China’s computer industry is booming

While Elon Musk’s Neuralink likes to say it’s “to pioneer“Input computers (BCIs), China’s BCI industry is already quietly moving from research to scale.

New startups are rushing to market non-invasive and non-invasive BCIs, backed by strong data, expanding clinical trials, and increasing consumer interest. So says Phoenix Peng, who founded not one but two BCI startups. He is the co-founder of NeuroXess, a manufacturer of BCI implants, and the founder and CEO of non-invasive ultrasound BCI startup Gestala.

His belief in the potential of this market is based on sustainable action: provinces such as Sichuan, Hubei, and Zhejiang are already there. set the prices of medical care for BCI, to accelerate its inclusion in national health insurance.

Over time, he envisions technology moving beyond medicine to “cure disease” to “enhance humanity,” he said.

“I’ve always maintained that neuroscience and AI are two sides of the same coin,” Peng said. “They need to integrate deeply, to realize the direct connection between the human brain and AI. BCI will be a great bridge between the intelligence based on carbon and silicon.

Four factors driving BCI in China

But over the next three to five years, the use of BCI should become more mainstream in healthcare, a market reaching billions as insurance expands, Peng told TechCrunch.

In August 2025, China’s Ministry of Industry and six other organizations he took out a map of the world to improve the development of BCIs. The plan looks at key technological developments by 2027, common industry standards, and overall product volume by 2030, with the goal of building a globally competitive BCI industry and supporting small private companies.

When asked what is driving China’s rapid progress in BCI, Peng told TechCrunch that it comes down to four reasons. The first is strong policy support, and multidisciplinary collaboration that aligns technical standards and clinical reimbursement. In December, at the 2025 Shenzhen BCI & Human-Computer Interaction Expo, China he announced 11.6 billion ($165 million) brain science fund to support BCI companies from research through commercialization.

The second factor is more clinical features, including larger patient pools and lower research costs that speed up trials. Health insurance in China means fast sales as soon as the government approves a device. This compares to the US where even if the FDA approves a device, private insurers, such as high-payers, must do so individually.

Researchers have completed the country’s first, wireless BCI test – only the second in the world – allowing a disabled patient to control devices without external devices, about CGTN. Neuralink is the origin of it he finished and the first such attempt.

“In traditional electronic BCIs, Chinese companies have been able to make progress in speech and language control, spinal cord rehabilitation, and stroke rehabilitation, with more than 50 revolutionary BCI tests completed by 2025,” Peng said, adding that next-generation efforts are now moving toward whole-brain neural decoding and encoding, including ultrasound. Hands‘s.

The third factor is the creation of mature Chinese industries, Peng says, in semiconductors, AI, and medical devices, which support rapid R&D and imaging. Finally, there are market-driven funds, government-led funds and private sector funds that are increasingly based on national trends.

Some of the more recent ones include Shanghai-based startup BCI Pictures of StairMed Technology to raise $48 million (350 million yuan) in Series B funding in February 2025. BrainCo, a neurotech company developing non-invasive BCIs and bionic organs, he is also silent filed for Hong Kong IPO, according to reports, after raising $287 million (2 trillion yuan) earlier this year. Peng’s company, Gestala, which was founded in January, is in talks with investors to close an angel soon, he tells us.

All told, Chinese BCI startups are rising to challenge US leaders such as Neuralink, Synchron, and Paradromics. In the middle very active players in China are NeuroXess, Neuracle, NeuralMatrix, BrainCo, Bo Rui Kang Tech, Aoyi Tech, Brainland Tech, and Zhiran Medical. They range from flexible programming methods to non-invasive computer brain technology.

This means that China’s BCI market is expected to grow to $530 million (3.8 billion) in 2025, up from 3.2 billion yuan in 2024. according to media reports, and simulations putting the market at 120 billion yuan by 2040.

Types of BCI

BCIs are taking two approaches. The first is disruptive electrophysiological BCIs such as NeuroXess and Neuralink that place electrodes in the human brain to record specific neuron signals. But this type comes with surgical risks. The second type is passive behavior Image of NeuroSky and Concept of the company BrainCo which sell in detail for safety and ease of use. (These devices — usually headbands or headbands using electroencephalography (EEG) — read electrical activity through the skull.)

The field is currently expanding, with emerging techniques – including ultrasound, magnetoencephalography imaging, transcranial magnetic stimulation, optical methods, and hybrid BCIs – giving researchers new tools to study and influence brain activity.

The founders also hope that the non-invasive technology can help overcome barriers to adoption. Not everyone is ready to undergo brain surgery to implant a device in their head.

Ultrasound BCIs from companies like OpenAI-backed Merge Labs and Gestala points to higher prevalence such as chronic pain, stroke, and depression. As non-invasive solutions, these technologies are easily accepted by patients and offer significant commercial opportunities.

Gestala, for example, expects to release its first-generation products by Q3, Peng said. Initial clinical trials have shown positive results, he added, saying that one session reduced pain by 50%, with results lasting one or two weeks.

HongShan Capital, formerly Sequoia China, has invested in Zhiran Medical, a startup launched in 2022 focused on improving long-term performance. The company uses flexible, high-quality electrodes to reduce swelling and signal loss associated with hard implants.

“Some technologies may seem advanced but not practical,” said Yang Yunxia, ​​a partner at HongShan Capital. he wrote in a blog post. While some appear to be entrepreneurs, they face “expensive investment” or major technical hurdles, Yunxia argued. Ultimately, business decisions come down to whether the seller believes a product can be developed into a sustainable business, the partner said.

Future years

Over the next five years, industry insiders expect China’s BCI regulations to be more in line with international standards, especially in terms of legal approval and data governance. Global goals created by organizations such as IEC and ISOalong with instructions from a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA.)), are expected to serve as key points.

Chinese authorities are also expected to tighten controls on disruptive devices, as well as what all BCI devices do, and limit the acceptance of non-disruptive technology.

As for morals faced with artificial intelligence or control devices, China is planning to strengthen the requirements for approval, expand quality control beyond medicine, and move toward unified technical standards for clinical evaluation.