ULS Robotics (傲鲨智能), a Shanghai-based developer of wearable exoskeletons, has announced the completion of a Series A round of funding for an undisclosed amount of money, tech media outlet 36Kr reported today.
Guoyi Capital alone backed the deal, with proceeds going toward iteration of core products, new product R&D, team building and market expansion.
It has received financing previously from a consortium of investors such as Future Capital, K2VC, Unity Venture and Innoangel Fund.
Founded in 2018, ULS Robotics shot to fame thanks to the immensely successful blockbuster “The Wandering Earth II” (2023), which features scenes of various robotic products, including the exoskeleton from the Shanghai startup.
Screenshot from “The Wandering Earth II.” Photo courtesy of ULS Robotics
Earlier, the firm first found fame on the Internet after footage of a food delivery rider wearing its exoskeleton to support reportedly 50kg of load went viral online in 2020.
Wider adoption
Over the past few years, exoskeleton has gained wider popularity in communities beyond just geeks in the early days.
The contraption has gone from a mere sci-fi gizmo to achieve rising real-world adoption by industries like logistics and manufacturing to cope with tasks involving heavy physical workload and potential health risks.
ULS Robotics is dedicated to the design and manufacturing of exoskeletons catering to industrial, healthcare and STEM-related applications.
After years of development, the company has acquired rich experience in robotic control system, motion control algorithms, multi-sensor fusion, human-machine interaction and machine vision, among other dimensions.
To date, ULS Robotics have come up with upper and lower extremity, waist and full-body exoskeletons, deploying them to use cases ranging from automotive production to airport ground handling, from electricity and mining to tertiary education.
Overseas expansion
The robotic suits have landed Chinese and EU certificates.
Exoskeletons will find increasing application in scenarios requiring “human-machine interaction,” which will benefit a bigger number of users, Xu Zhenhua, founder and CEO of ULS Robotics, told 36Kr.
“Going forward, we will actively explore the overseas market for exoskeleton, and double down on application,” he said. “We will also scale the newly designed specialized exoskeleton platform to cover the consumer market.”
Photo courtesy of ULS Robotics
Commenting on the investment, Zhao Yingjie, a partner at Guoyi Capital, claimed that ULS Robotics products are able to complement automated mobile robots in an industrial scenario, with the potential of one day being applied in elderly care.
He credited the firm for its lab-to-market efficiency, saying once new products come out, they have achieved almost instant adoption, showcasing the sheer market demand and the firm’s potential.
