Zhuge Robotics
Category: Robotics / Embodied AI
Yantai-based embodied-AI company that makes AI LOOK, an autonomous guide robot for blind and visually impaired people that needs no pre-mapping and no remote control. Zhuge Robotics was founded in 2009. The company is led by Zhu Qingyi (朱清毅). Based in Yantai, Shandong, China. Team size: 101-500. Latest round: Pre-Series A. Key investors include Pudong Venture Capital (上海浦创苗圃人工智能产业创业投资合伙企业), Zhejiang Bawei Tong Spatial Intelligence Technology (八维通空间智能), Shijiazhuang Quchuang Technology (石家庄驱创科技).
- Founded
- 2009
- Headquarters
- Yantai, Shandong, China
- Team size
- 101-500
Value proposition
Lets visually impaired people travel on their own. The AI LOOK robot avoids obstacles, navigates and physically leads the user indoors and outdoors. It works straight after power-on, with no SLAM pre-mapping and no teleoperation, and describes the surroundings by voice.
Products and solutions
AI LOOK blind-assistant guide robot (wheeled, about 6kg, multi-sensor, each unit is insured, companion smart glasses planned), special-education accessible smart campus platform, accessible exam systems, blind music-teaching software, accessible websites, apps and mini-programs, elderly-friendly accessibility retrofits.
Unique value
Claimed world-first guide robot that needs no pre-scanned map and no manual remote control. It is designed by a blind founder who is also the first user.
Target customer
Visually impaired individuals. Also disabled persons' federations, special-education schools and campuses, public transit and public-service operators, and elderly-care services.
Industries served
Assistive technology / disability services, special education, elderly care, public transportation and public services, smart city accessibility
Technology advantage
Unified multi-sensor fusion algorithm that combines 3D LiDAR, stereo and mono cameras, ultrasonic sensors, barometer and IMU into one model instead of separate per-sensor pipelines. It also uses a proprietary pedestrian-walkway vision large model. The company has a large real-world dataset from visually impaired users and 15+ years of accessibility domain experience.
How they differentiate
Works without mapping or remote control. Multi-sensor fusion lets the robot lead the user, rather than only warning about obstacles as wearables and canes do. The product is designed with blind users as product managers. It includes voice scene description via a cloud model and every unit is insured.
Main competitors
Glidance (Glide AI mobility aid, US), WeWALK (smart cane, UK), other Chinese guide-dog robot and smart-cane makers
Key partnerships
Baidu Maps and Amap (Gaode) navigation integration, ByteDance Doubao voice assistant integration, Bawei Tong Spatial Intelligence (technology partner turned shareholder), Shanghai Humanoid Robot Innovation Incubator (incubated company), Lanzhou University (joint AI assistive-technology research institute agreed Dec 2025), London Export / Jack Perry (consensus reached on international expansion cooperation, Mar 2026).
Notable customers
China Disabled Persons' Federation (accessible distance-learning system), Beijing Union University (accessible distance-learning system), China Association of the Blind (accessible distance-learning system), International Labour Organization (accessible distance-learning system)
Major milestones
2009: company founded in Yantai as Yantai Zhuge Software. 2020: guide-robot project launched. Mar 2026: showcased at Zhongguancun Forum. May 2026: national second prize at the first Intelligent Collaborative Robot Scenario Innovation Competition. 2026: presented at the World AI Conference and launched at the China International Welfare Expo. Oct 2026: Pre-A round closed.
Growth metrics
About 50+ employees. Per an Aug 2026 interview, about 1,200 AI LOOK pre-orders and a first mass-production batch of about 2,000-3,000 units planned for Sept 2026 delivery. More than ten product generations over 6 years of R&D.
Market positioning
Early commercial leader in China's niche accessibility embodied-AI segment for visually impaired mobility, backed by state-owned VC and an industry strategic investor.
Geographic focus
China (nationwide rollout), with early international interest (UK)
Patents and IP
Patented self-developed enclosure design that solves heat dissipation and waterproofing together; no other patent details are public.
About Zhu Qingyi (朱清毅)
Founder and Chairman of Yantai Zhuge Software Technology (est. 2009, now renamed Shandong Zhuge Robotics), which builds accessibility software. Blind since his teens, he is a self-taught software engineer. He ran a massage business before 2009 and built an accessibility website for blind users in 2001. Vice Director of the China Association of the Blind Accessibility & Assistive Technology Committee (Dec 2025).
Latest news about Zhuge Robotics
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Official website: https://www.zhuge-soft.cn/