Nongfu Spring founder Zhong Shanshan expands into hard tech with a RMB 500 million battery bet
创业邦 · wechat · 2026-07-26
Nongfu Spring founder quietly builds a hard-tech investment map
A long feature from Phoenix Tech says Zhong Shanshan and his YST ecosystem have been stepping up investments in hard tech through two low-profile vehicles: Qunshan Gezhi Fund and Qiantang Lab.
What they’re backing
- Wood Fruit Robotics: an almost RMB 100 million seed round led by a YST-linked entity.
- Zhejiang Zhibang Lithium Battery New Materials: roughly RMB 500 million, for about 10% of the company.
- Other bets mentioned include photonic chips, new materials, biomedicine, liquid cooling, and space compute.
Why it matters
The piece argues Zhong’s strategy is different from a typical corporate VC:
- no controlling stakes
- no brand-heavy PR
- early bets on technically deep, upstream layers
It frames this as a pivot from consumer goods into a broader hard-tech portfolio centered on materials, semiconductors, energy storage, and robotics.
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