⚠ Disclaimer: This entry may be incomplete, out of date, or inaccurate. It is AI-maintained on a best-effort basis. Do not rely on it as a sole source — verify claims independently using the sources listed below.
Summary
Fourier Intelligence 🇨🇳 is a Shanghai-based company that began in rehabilitation robotics and exoskeletons before expanding to general humanoids with the GR-2. With ~$100M+ raised and SoftBank as a notable investor, it is better capitalized than most Chinese humanoid startups outside Unitree and UBTECH. Its rehabilitation roots give it defensible positioning — the healthcare use case for humanoid form factor is more technically justified than pure manufacturing. ~300 humanoid units shipped in 2025 across healthcare and industrial customers.
Key Facts
- Founded: 2015 (Shanghai)
- HQ: Shanghai, China
- Type: Company — Platform OEM; rehabilitation device manufacturer
- Status: Active — commercial; 300 units in 2025
- Ownership: Private; Chinese domestic
- Total funding: $100M+ (multiple rounds; SoftBank investment confirmed)
- Key robots: GR-2 (full-size humanoid); A3 (rehabilitation exoskeleton); FT Pelvis (gait training robot)
- Primary markets: Healthcare, rehabilitation, general industrial
- Units shipped (humanoid): ~300 in 2025
- Value chain position: Platform OEM; rehabilitation + humanoid dual-track
- Chinese-owned: Yes
Funding & Investors
| Round | Date | Amount | Notable Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Series A–C | 2015–2021 | Undisclosed | Sinovation Ventures, Chinese state funds |
| Series D | 2022–2023 | Undisclosed | SoftBank (participation); additional strategic investors |
| Additional | 2024–2025 | Undisclosed | Undisclosed; total ~$100M+ cumulative |
Total raised: $100M+ (approximate; no public disclosure).
SoftBank connection: SoftBank’s participation in Fourier is consistent with SoftBank’s broader humanoid bet — they also owned Boston Dynamics (sold to Hyundai 2021) and have continued investing in physical robotics companies. SoftBank Vision Fund’s Asia investments have included multiple Chinese robotics players.
Rehabilitation device background: Fourier’s rehabilitation products have been sold commercially for 10+ years with CE marking (Europe) and NMPA clearance (China). This means the company has a compliance infrastructure and clinical relationships that pure industrial humanoid startups lack — potentially an advantage if healthcare humanoid regulation develops.
What It Is / How It Works
Fourier Intelligence’s background in rehabilitation exoskeletons is its core differentiator. Rehabilitation robots require safe force control, compliant movement, and precise interaction with human bodies — skills directly transferable to humanoid manipulation design.
GR-2: Full-size humanoid, ~1.65m tall, ~55 kg. Designed for both clinical settings and general industrial use. The architecture reflects rehabilitation origins: joint force control, safety-first actuation, and patient-safe movement profiles. This makes GR-2 more conservative in speed and force output than pure industrial competitors, but appropriate for healthcare co-working environments.
Healthcare use case: Hospitals and care facilities are designed for humans — the human form factor argument is stronger here than in manufacturing. Tasks include: assisting patient transfers, physical rehabilitation exercises, elder care mobility assistance. The regulatory path for a healthcare humanoid is demanding (FDA clearance in the US, CE in Europe) but Fourier already has cleared rehabilitation products, providing a compliance template.
International distribution: Fourier has active sales in Europe, Southeast Asia, and Middle East markets for its rehabilitation devices, giving it international distribution channels that Chinese industrial humanoid competitors lack.
Founder Background
Alex Gu (顾捷) — Co-founder & CEO
- Engineering background; University degree in mechanical engineering (institution not publicly confirmed)
- Background in medical device engineering before founding Fourier
- Founded Fourier Intelligence in 2015 with a focus on neurological rehabilitation — a clinically validated need with regulatory pathway
- Led the company through a decade of rehabilitation product development before the pivot to general humanoids in 2022–2023
- LinkedIn: search “Alex Gu Fourier Intelligence”
Note: Alex Gu’s rehabilitation engineering background is unusual in the humanoid sector dominated by aerospace and computing PhDs. The clinical orientation has produced a company with different design priorities (patient safety, force compliance) and a different customer relationship model (hospital procurement vs. factory automation).
People — Last Reviewed: 2026-06-19
Supply Chain & Dependencies
Actuators: Not publicly specified. Rehabilitation exoskeleton joints use servo actuators with torque control; GR-2 likely uses similar technology at larger scale. Domestic Chinese suppliers likely given manufacturing base.
Rehabilitation devices: CE-marked; NMPA-cleared. International supply chain for medical-grade components.
Compute: Not disclosed per unit. Medical device AI (CNS rehabilitation applications) runs on embedded processors; humanoid extension likely NVIDIA Jetson class.
Manufacturing: Shanghai. Established medical device manufacturing infrastructure for exoskeletons; humanoid production expanding from this base.
Claim Verification
Claim: ~300 humanoid units shipped in 2025
Status: Unverified (company-reported; no independent audit)
Supporting sources:
- Multiple industry analyses cite this figure
- Consistent with 2015 founding date and rehabilitation product revenue base providing capital for humanoid development
Refuting / qualifying sources:
- Private company; no mandatory disclosure
- “Units shipped” may include research, evaluation, and clinical trial units alongside commercial deployments
Summary: Directionally plausible; no independent verification.