WHEN one enters Wang Yongkun’s office in a robotics industry park in Bao’an District, the first thing you will notice is an Iron Man model, giving a rough idea about Wang, who is the co-founder and CEO of Standard Robots (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd. Entrepreneurial venture Born in 1991 in Heilongjiang Province, Wang jointly set up Standard Robots with five other Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) alumni in 2015 on the campus when he graduated with a master’s degree in automation. He is now known as a SLAM (simultaneous localization and mapping) technology expert in the country. Wang said his startup venture wasn’t what he originally planned in life. “I got offers from overseas universities to continue my Ph.D. studies while I was in my second year of postgraduate studies,” he recalled. In 2013, the final year of his graduate studies, Wang won a prize in a robotic competition in HIT, which changed his mind about studying overseas. “It’s kind of cool to see a product I made come to life,” Wang said. “I’ve always wanted to develop my own world-leading robot.” Relocation leads to rapid growth It was at the same competition where Wang was inspired to start his own business. In the competition, Wang met Li Zexiang, who is now a professor of electronic and computer engineering at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and founder of Shenzhen InnoX Academy. While listening to Li’s description, Wang imagined a scenario where robotics and highly intelligent equipment would be widely used in different industrial sectors. “At that moment, I was motivated and felt how cool it would be to grasp robotic technologies to compete with other countries,” Wang said. After finishing his postgraduate studies in 2015, Wang set up Standard Robots to engage in the R&D of industrial driverless technology in a 12-sqm on-campus office at HIT. By naming his company “Standard Robots,” he hoped he could create a standard for the industry. One year later, Wang and his partners made another game-changing decision — relocating the company to Shenzhen. “We chose Shenzhen because we discovered that the spare parts and circuit boards we sourced online came from here. It is a place close to the upstream supply chain,” Wang said. Ups and downs In the early stage, Wang experienced ups and downs such as cash flow strains and office relocations. “But I still had faith in our autonomous technology, which I believed was among the most advanced in the sector. If we couldn’t make it, I was sure that no other companies would be able to make it happen,” Wang said, recalling the company’s most difficult period. After meeting with more than 140 potential investors in five months, Wang managed to pull in investment of over 10 million yuan, saving the company from the brink of collapse. Wang recalled an unforgettable moment. He received a call from a core supplier demanding for a meeting. He decided to meet after checking the debts he owed. During the meeting, the supplier didn’t mention the debt. Instead, he encouraged Wang, offering him resources to get through his difficulties. “In Shenzhen, the entrepreneurial spirit is everywhere. It is never embarrassing to talk about your dreams, as there are always people standing beside you, supporting and helping you. This might be Shenzhen’s charm,” he said. In 2017, Wang led a team to compete in the fifth Bao’an District Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, which brought a total turnaround for Standard Robots. The team not only won a 1.1-million-yuan prize, but also was granted a 40-square-meter booth free of charge at the Bao’an Industry Development Expo at the Shenzhen World Exhibition and Convention Center, where the company reached agreements with well-known companies like Huawei, ZTE, and Foxconn. In 2018, it became an official supplier for Huawei, which Wang described as a milestone in the company’s development. Since then, Standard Robots has entered a fast track of development, with its AMRs (autonomous mobile robots)being widely used in China and exported to the U.S. and Japan. In 2019, Wang made it to Forbes’ “30 under 30” (the top 30 Chinese entrepreneurs under the age of 30) China List and Hurun’s China Under 30s to Watch list. “Our company is committed to independent R&D in SLAM technology and AMR operation systems, which are essential in China’s transformation from being labor-intensive to technology-driven,” Wang said. (Wei Jie) | 