In the year 2018,? more than 400 startups participated in funding activities. Some of these startups show promising growth in the coming year and have become one of the top Beijing startups for 2019
China has risen as a startup leader in the Asia Pacific region since the establishment of Special Economic Zones in various parts of the country in the 1980s. The capital city of China, Beijing has since then grown to be the largest startup ecosystem in the country.
Top Beijing Startups to Watch out for in 2019
Du Xiaoman
Beijing based startup Du Xiaoman is a spin-off from Baidu and has established itself as an independent body focused on artificial intelligence. The company came into existence in 2015 with the plans to develop financial technology that is AI driven. It is one of the top Beijing startups for 2019 and has raised $1.9 billion from a single round so far. The round was led by TPG and also featured Carlyle Group. This top startup in Beijing plans to take on major fintech firms in China and establish them in a secure position in the Chinese financial system.
Know more about this top startup in Beijing
Website: www.duxiaoman.com
Kuaishou
Kuaishou was established in 2011 and has picked $1.4 billion from two funding rounds since its inception. This top startup in Beijing completed the most recent round in January 2018 raising $1 billion from Tencent Holdings at a pre-money valuation of $17 billion. ?Kuaishou is one of the top Beijing startups for 2019 and is also known as Kwai Inc. It is a popular video and photo sharing app within China and internationally with over 700 million users. The Beijing based startup was founded in 2011 by Hua Xu and has not just got impressive investments this year but has also acquired AcFun, a popular Chinese barrage platform.
Know more about this top startup in Kuaishou
Website: www.kuaishou.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/??
Twitter: www.twitter.com/kuaishouvideo
Meicai
Beijing based startup Meicai is mobile e-vendor for vegetables that is helping farmers deal with buyers directly. The company helps farmers, especially in the rural areas, sell their produce to restaurants and individual buyers on their platform. This top startup in Beijing has raised $1.5 billion for its novel service. In 2018, Meicai participated in Series E and Series F rounds raising $450 and $800? million respectively. Liu Chuanjun and Xu Xueyin co-founded Meicai in 2014 which is today among the top Beijing startups for 2019.
Know more about this top startup in Meicai
Website: www.meicai.cn
NetEase Cloud Music
NetEase Cloud Music was established in 2013 by William Lei Ding and has raised $708.8 million till date. It is a top startup in Beijing and one of the unicorn companies the regional startup ecosystem. The online music services platform is quite popular in China and has recently completed its Series B round of funding. This round for the Beijing based startup was led by popular search engine brand Baidu that also featured Boyu Capital, China Everbright New Economy Fund, and General Atlantic.? This is the second round of funding for the music app which is a sub-organisation of NetEase.
Know more about this top startup in Bejing
Website: www.music.163.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/neteasecloudmusic
VIPKID
Beijing based startup VIPKID is an online education company that is helping children in China get the best elementary education that is according to the U.S Common Core State Standards. The company is the brainchild of Cindy Mi who founded this top startup in Beijing in 2013.? VIPKID completed its Series D round in April 2018 in which it pocketed $500 million.? This is the seventh round of funding for the company and was led by Yunfeng Capital, Tencent Holdings, Sequoia Capital China, and Coatue Management. It is among the top Beijing startups for 2019 which is slated for impressive growth in the coming year and years after that.
Know more about this top startup in Beijing
Website: www.vipkidteachers.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/vipkid/
Twitter: www.twitter.com/thevipkidlife
Didi Chuxing
Didi Chuxing is a mobile transportation platform that was founded in 2012 by Bo Zhang and Cheng Wei. The Beijing based startup has got international recognition for its services which include an entire range of commuting options available in more than 400 cities. The company has raised $20.6 billion since its inception, and its last round was in July this year. This was the Series F round in which Didi Chuxing picked up $500 million becoming one of the top Beijing startups for 2019. The innovative startup has also made five acquisitions since 2015 which includes UBER China as well.
Know more about this top startup in Beijing
Website: www.didiglobal.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/??
Twitter: www.twitter.com/DidiChuxing
Zuoyebang
The next company on our list of top Beijing startups for 2019 is Zuoyebang, one of the top Chinese edtech startups. The company was born in 2014 and is a sub-organisation of Baidu. Till date, the Beijing based startup has raised $585 million from four rounds of funding. The most recent round was in July 2018 in which it secured $350 million from lead investor Coatue Management and seven other participant investors. Founded by Hou Jianbin, Zuoyebang is an online platform that offers tutoring services and homework help from both teachers and peers for K-12 students. It is one of the top Beijing startups for 2019 with a user base of 179 million and upwards.
Know more about this top startup in Beijing
Website: www.zybang.com
G7
Beijing based startup G7 completed a round of private equity funding this year in December. The company raised $320 million in this round led by HOPU Investment Management Company. G7 is an integrated fleet management solutions Beijing based startup that uses its proprietary artificial intelligence in IoT technology for offering its services. The last round of funding was a kind of a record-breaking deal in the global AIot sector making G7 one of the top Beijing startups for 2019.? The company is currently working with another partner to develop an autonomous trucking network. G7 was founded in 2010 by Wu Haibo and Zhai? Xuehn.
Know more about this top startup in Beijing
Website: www.english.g7.com.cn
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/??????????????
Xiaozhu
Xiaozhu has risen to become a top startup in Beijing since its inception in 2012 offering tough competition to the likes of Airbnb. It is an online platform for finding and providing short-term rental properties. The company was founded by Chi Chen and Liantao Wang and has raised $571.6 million till date. In October 2018, the Beijing based startup raised $300 million in its Series F round from YF Capital (lead investor), Joy Capital, Morningside Venture Capital, GIC, Capital Today, and Advantech Capital (lead investor). The company plans to launch a smart service and security system for its platform very soon.
Know more about this top startup in Beijing
Website: www.xiaozhu.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/????
Zhihu
Founded in 2011 by Jixin Huang, Shenshen Li, and Yuan Zhou, Zhihu has completed six funding rounds since its inception and is one of the top Beijing startups for 2019. The last round of funding was in July 2018 in which the innovative startup raised $270 million at a pre-investment valuation of $2.2 billion. The Beijing based startup is a social Q&A platform which more than 60 million active users in a month. The platform can be used on the web or through its app as well which is compatible with Android and iOS.
Know more about this top startup in Beijing
Website: www.zhihu.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/zhihu-com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/wenzhihu
Beiing?s startup scene is constantly growing and boasts of several unicorn companies within it. Most of the companies mentioned in this list of top Beijing startups for 2019 are also unicorn companies with a minimum valuation of $2 billion.