Core Viewpoint - The article discusses the journey of Songyan Power, a startup in the humanoid robot sector, highlighting its unconventional approach to overcoming challenges in funding, technology, and commercialization, ultimately demonstrating that success can come from grassroots efforts rather than elite backgrounds [1][39]. Funding Survival - The company faced significant funding challenges due to its grassroots team lacking prestigious backgrounds, making it difficult to attract investors in a nascent market [7][8]. - Initial self-funding of 1 million RMB allowed the team to create a demonstrable humanoid robot, which subsequently attracted interest from investors, leading to a seed round of 7.6 million RMB [11][13]. - After securing initial funding, the company quickly progressed from a prototype to a functional robot, raising an additional 25 million RMB shortly thereafter [13]. Technical and Talent Bottlenecks - The company encountered a technical and talent bottleneck after initial successes, leading to a cash burn rate of 3 million RMB per month and a precarious financial situation [15][17]. - Acknowledging the need for a shift in strategy, the company decided to pivot towards deep reinforcement learning, a more advanced algorithmic approach, despite the high demand and low supply of qualified engineers in this field [20][22]. - The company implemented a targeted recruitment strategy to identify and cultivate potential talent, leading to the successful onboarding of engineers who could contribute to the development of advanced humanoid robots [24][25]. Commercialization Challenges - By 2025, the company faced a new challenge in commercialization, lacking personnel with marketing and sales expertise, which hindered its ability to gain market visibility [27][28]. - The company recognized the need for a marketing strategy and initiated a campaign centered around a high-profile demonstration of a backflip, which showcased the robot's capabilities and attracted media attention [30][31]. - Following the successful marketing efforts, the company secured over 1,000 orders for its humanoid robots, marking a significant turnaround in its commercial prospects [34][35]. Key Insights - The company learned that tangible product demonstrations were more effective in overcoming trust barriers with investors than mere business plans [37]. - The importance of identifying and nurturing potential talent rather than solely relying on established experts was emphasized as a critical factor in overcoming technical challenges [37]. - The necessity of integrating marketing and sales strategies into the business model was highlighted as essential for sustainable growth and market presence [37].

"人形机器人现在存在泡沫，但科学发展和产业推动也需要泡沫。" 他看到，科学家创业的弱点是重视技术创新多过客户需求，从事出发多过从人出发："总想着先把事做起来，可是不分权、不分钱，大家哪有动力持续做高尚 的事？" 王田苗于是放权、让利，让负责各事业部的学生成为决策者和大股东。 九号机器人、医疗机器人公司天智航与柏惠维康、农业机器人公司博创联动等，都是这样从博创兴盛中独立而来。 文丨王与桐 编辑丨程曼褀 王田苗有很多身份，他研究机器人三十多年，是北京航空航天大学机器人研究所教授和名誉所长；他孵化了九号机器人、埃夫特等多个明星项目，并在四年前 联合十五位科学家发起成立了 "中关村智友科学家基金"。 在新一轮具身智能浪潮中，王田苗参与投资了 银河通用 、加速进化等人形机器人公司，和小雨智造、灵足时代、知行机器人、环峻视觉、蓝点触控等产业链 公司。 64 岁的王田苗依然精瘦、挺拔。学生说，无论什么场合，王田苗都穿衬衫或西装，一尘不染。他认为衣着得体是对每一位交流者的尊重。 20 年前，王田苗是中国第一批做创业孵化的科学家，他与有关朋友一起于 2002 年成立的博创兴盛就是孵化器，在意识到自己的短板后，他选择放手让学生 ...