China
China’s online mutual aid market: A new battleground for tech giants and startups
Startups spotted the opportunity and tech giants too have entered a market seen tripling by 2025. But profitability is still in doubt amid regulatory uncertainty
Keep: Social fitness app bags $80m Series E as Covid-19 lockdown fuels demand for virtual gyms
Keep becomes China’s first sports tech unicorn as number of fitness app users in the country almost doubled to 89m amid home confinement and gym closures
QinLin Tech gets advertisers to pay for your local security systems
Besides keeping residents safe from intruders, QinLin’s smart community business model also offers essential home services, social activities and group-buying discounts
Smile Formula offers orthodontic treatment online, and 70% cheaper
Unaffected by the coronavirus outbreak, Smile Formula served 2,000 customers within nine months of launch and raised RMB 10m seed funding in April
Neil Shen: The super unicorn hunter
His bet on ByteDance, the startup that gave the world TikTok, helped Neil Shen top this year's Forbes Midas List. But for Shen, even in that deal he once made the wrong call
Some Chinese startups spot new market opportunities amid Covid-19 gloom
Crises create opportunities for startups to pivot and innovate, as Covid-19 is showing
Onesight: Reducing building construction errors with 3D, AR/VR visualization apps
Shanghai-based Onesight provides a digital alternative to 2D architectural drawings for teams working on construction sites
China bets on road-vehicle coordination for the mass adoption of autonomous driving cars by 2025
Money pours in as China pushes sector to be the next growth engine, and both self-driving startups and their investors are optimistic about their commercialization attempts
Luo Yonghao: Maverick founder who gave Smartisan its allure, but couldn't build a winner
The Smartisan founder and internet celebrity is making a comeback with live commerce, after failing to sell enough smartphones at his own company
Pony.ai repurposes its robotaxi fleet for last-mile delivery amid the Covid-19 pandemic
Pony.ai is seeking more ways to commercialize its versatile autonomous driving technology, transforming mobility and logistics
How Sequoia Capital China is helping its portfolio startups get through the Covid-19 crisis
The renowned investor is also making big bets on the opportunities that lie head
Xrush makes brushing fun for kids with "smart toothbrushes"
Imitating every brushing move by a child, Xrush's smart gadget uses interactive games to motivate kids to brush their teeth properly
Infervision: AI-screening platform helps doctors detect Covid-19 infection within 10 seconds
Chinese medtech lets doctors analyze chest CT scans to diagnose Covid-19 with 98% accuracy; first used in Wuhan, Infervision's system has also been deployed in Japan, Italy and the US
Covid-19 has renewed investors' interest in China's online education sector
Will skyrocketing demand for online education during Covid-19 give China's edtechs that long-awaited push to profitability?
Xuebacoming: Promising edtech had compliance issues from day one
Other hefty mistakes also contributed to Xuebacoming's demise – proof that investor and media support, and a booming market, won't guarantee success
