Haiqing Zhiyuan Lists on HKEX

Author｜Lu Ziye

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The 'First Physical AI Stock' Arrives on HKEX

On June 22, Haiqing Zhiyuan officially listed on the HKEX. On its debut, the stock opened with a gap-up surge. Priced at just HK$7.2 per share during the IPO, it opened at HK$29, soaring over 302%. The stock peaked at HK$30 during intraday trading, pushing its market capitalization past HK$23.1 billion. It ultimately closed at HK$26.7, up 270.83%.

In fact, Haiqing Zhiyuan had already demonstrated strong fundraising capabilities during the offering phase: Hong Kong's public offering attracted over 250,000 snap up (frenzied applications), with oversubscription nearing 7,200 times and frozen funds exceeding HK$440 billion, ranking it among the top five mainboard IPOs in Hong Kong stock history.

Capital fervor stems from Haiqing Zhiyuan's glamorous label (labels): the 'first physical AI stock.' While many tech firms focus on generative AI, Haiqing Zhiyuan takes a different path, aiming to equip machines with 'super eyes' to uncover invisible secrets in the physical world.

Based on revenue for 2024 and 2025, Haiqing Zhiyuan ranks first in China's multispectral AI industry in both overall market share and large-model service market share.

Equipping Machines with 'Super Eyes'

Haiqing Zhiyuan is a multispectral AI technology company. What is multispectral physical AI? Though it sounds complex, it essentially resolves 'blind spots' in traditional vision technology.

In the vast world, the visible light perceivable to the human eye and ordinary cameras is merely a fraction of the spectrum. Under nighttime, foggy, or intense light conditions, ordinary cameras often fail to see. However, Haiqing Zhiyuan's core technology integrates visible light, infrared, ultraviolet, sound waves, millimeter waves, and even terahertz waves, combined with AI algorithms, to equip machines with multispectral 'super eyes.'

When a transformer is about to overheat, when an underground cable is silently aging, or when a chemical plant experiences an invisible gas leak... ordinary cameras remain oblivious, but Haiqing Zhiyuan's devices can 'sense' and issue early warnings.

This full-chain system, known as 'Optical-Sensing Graph Computing,' enables Haiqing Zhiyuan's products to be widely deployed in complex To G (government) and To B (enterprise) scenarios, including smart cities, firefighting, industrial safety, and data center operations.

To support this hardware, Haiqing Zhiyuan developed two 'black technologies': the htOS operating system, designed for edge computing, reduces developer workload by 80%; and the htFS file system, tailored for embedded devices, claims to extend storage device lifespan by 100 times, acting as a 'life-extending tool' for security and industrial sensors.

However, what truly propelled Haiqing Zhiyuan to a sky-high valuation is its 'transformation' in business model.

Rewinding to 2023, Haiqing Zhiyuan was a typical hardware company. Back then, its revenue primarily relied on selling multispectral AI modules and sensing terminals, with a gross margin of just 12.2% and even incurring losses exceeding RMB 18 million.

By 2024 and 2025, Haiqing Zhiyuan played its trump card: the 'Zhiyuan Origin Large Model.' It shifted from merely selling hardware to offering cloud-based intelligent analysis services. Hardware became the 'pipeline' for data collection, while subsequent services—algorithm iteration, model maintenance, and anomaly alerts—became the continuous 'revenue stream.'

This shift reversed the company's financials: from FY2023 to FY2025, revenue surged from RMB 117 million to RMB 523 million and RMB 669 million, with a compound annual growth rate nearing 139%.

In 2025, revenue from multispectral AI large-model services skyrocketed from 0% to 53.1%, surpassing hardware as the top revenue source. This high-margin business (with gross margins once reaching 49.5% and subscription services exceeding 70%) directly drove the company to profitability in 2024 and 2025.

A Security Veteran's Third Entrepreneurial Venture

Behind Haiqing Zhiyuan, this AI dark horse, stand two industry veterans with over 20 years of experience: Zhou Bo (Chairman and CEO) and Chen Yonggang (Executive Director and Technical Expert).

Both graduated from Xi'an University of Science and Technology and Dalian University of Technology, respectively. Since 1999, they have worked side by side, holding positions at Chengdu Keli Electronics and Shenzhen Tumin Industrial. In 2001, Keli's founder, Zhang Shaofeng, established Tumin Industrial, and Zhou and Chen joined.

In 2005, Zhou and Chen teamed up again to found Shenzhen Huanghe Digital Technology, specializing in network video surveillance and successfully participating in the national-level 'Safe City' project. In 2009, the company was acquired by a Canadian-listed company.

After achieving financial freedom, Zhou and Chen Keenly perceive (keenly perceived) the growing limitations of traditional security systems relying solely on visible light. Thus, in 2013, they once again joined forces to establish Haiqing Zhiyuan in Shenzhen Bao'an, from the outset focusing on the less-traveled path of 'multispectral AI.'

However, Haiqing Zhiyuan's capital journey was far from smooth.

In late 2017, Haiqing Zhiyuan attempted a share-swap merger with Hunan Lebo Technology, primarily engaged in smart parking, briefly becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lebo. However, strategic divergences between the two sides nullified the expected synergies. In January 2020, they amicably parted ways, dissolving the equity swap.

After regaining independence, Haiqing Zhiyuan embarked on intensive fundraising, completing five rounds of financing totaling RMB 260 million from 2020 to 2025. Its valuation soared from RMB 350 million in Series A to RMB 3.55 billion in Series D.

Behind the high valuations lay brutal capital gambles. During Series A financing, Zhou and others signed stringent performance commitment clauses with investors. Due to cumulative net profit shortfalls from 2020 to 2022, the bet failed. In May 2025, Zhou and Chen were forced to transfer over 160,000 shares at a nominal price of RMB 1 each to 11 investment institutions as compensation.

Despite setbacks, Haiqing Zhiyuan not only survived but also established two major production bases in Shenzhen and Zhejiang Longyou. Especially after relocating its SMT automated production line to Zhejiang, operating costs dropped by at least 20%, and it successfully tapped into over 50% new customer growth in the Yangtze River Delta region.

Today, with Haiqing Zhiyuan's listing, early investors have reaped substantial rewards. Based on the opening market capitalization, the largest external shareholder, Zheshang Venture Capital (holding 13.22%), saw returns exceed 25 times, while Langke Investment (holding 5.87%) achieved an astonishing 113 times return.

Emerging Concerns: Can the RMB 10 Billion Valuation Hold?

Based on revenue for 2024 and 2025, Haiqing Zhiyuan ranks first in China's multispectral AI industry in both overall market share and large-model service market share.

However, Haiqing Zhiyuan faces several concerns. While revenue is rising, net profit fell to RMB 29.35 million in 2025, down 27.4% year-on-year. Where did the money go?

On one hand, listing expenses reached RMB 17.43 million. On the other, costs ballooned: R&D spending surged 101.6% year-on-year (to RMB 50.79 million), and general administrative expenses expanded by 259% (to RMB 46.8 million). The costs of scaling up are eroding profit margins.

Transitioning from hardware to large-scale G-end and B-end businesses also strains capital. In 2025, Haiqing Zhiyuan's net cash flow from operating activities was -RMB 130 million. By the end of 2025, cash on hand stood at just RMB 65.6 million, while short-term borrowings reached RMB 152 million.

By the end of 2025, Haiqing Zhiyuan's accounts receivable hit RMB 173 million, with collection days extending to 95 and overdue amounts exceeding RMB 67 million. Inventory balances surged 150% to RMB 80.2 million, with inventory turnover days jumping from 44 to 206. This indicates that while service revenue is profitable, hardware inventory backlogs and slow collections are tightening the noose around Haiqing Zhiyuan.

From 2023 to 2025, the top five clients accounted for 38.3%, 59.0%, and 46.8% of revenue, respectively. Revenue health is highly tied to the procurement budgets of a few core clients. Should major clients cut spending, performance could 'change face.'

Additionally, despite being the industry leader, Haiqing Zhiyuan holds just a 3.3%-3.5% market share. This indicates an extremely fragmented and highly dispersed multispectral AI market. The top five players combined hold only 10.9% of the market. While Haiqing Zhiyuan leads, its advantage over the second-place competitor is less than 1 percentage point, constantly at risk of being overtaken by infrared thermal imaging giants or traditional vision leaders.

Undeniably, the multispectral AI track remains a blue ocean. Institutions predict the global multispectral AI market will exceed RMB 300 billion by 2030. As the 'first physical AI stock' to list on the HKEX, Haiqing Zhiyuan has gained capital market favor, but its true tests are just beginning.

References:

'Stock Price Surges 327%! HK-Listed 'First Physical AI Stock' Debuts, Leading in Niche AI Large Models,' Zhidx;

'Shenzhen's Hidden Champion: Equipping Cameras with 'Super Eyes,' Annual Revenue Reaches RMB 523 Million, HKEX Listing,' Pencil News;

'Another IPO Emerges from Shenzhen Bao'an! A 50-Year-Old Founder Makes Multispectral AI China's Top,' Cyzone;

'Chased by RMB 440 Billion in Funds, How Solid Is Haiqing Zhiyuan's 'First Physical AI Stock' Status?' Elements;

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