On February 23, technology website TechCrunch reported that although Elon Musk’s Neuralink always claims to be the “pioneer” of brain-computer interface technology, China’s brain-computer interface industry has quietly moved from the research stage to large-scale application.

Peng Lei, founder of Brain Tiger Technology, said that against the background of increased policy support, expanded clinical trials and growing investor interest, a new wave of startups are competing to promote the commercialization of implantable and non-invasive brain-computer interfaces. Peng Lei has founded two brain-computer interface startups in succession. He is the co-founder of Brain Tiger Technology, an implantable brain-computer interface device company, and the founder and CEO of Gestala, a non-invasive ultrasound brain-computer interface startup.

His confidence in the potential of this market is based on China's practical actions: Sichuan, Hubei, Zhejiang and other provinces have formulated medical service price projects for brain-computer interfaces, accelerating the process of incorporating them into the national medical insurance system.

He believes that over time, this technology will expand from the medical field "treating diseases" to "enhancing human capabilities." Peng Lei said: "I have always believed that neuroscience and AI are two sides of the same coin. They are destined to be deeply integrated to achieve direct high-bandwidth connections between the human brain and AI. The brain-computer interface will become the ultimate bridge between carbon-based intelligence and silicon-based intelligence. This may sound far away, but it represents an unimaginably huge market in the future."

Four factors promote the development of China’s brain-computer industry

However, Peng Lei told TechCrunch that in the next three to five years, the application of brain-computer interfaces may still be concentrated in the medical and health field. As health insurance coverage expands, the market size will reach billions of dollars.

Peng Lei

In August 2025, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and six other departments jointly released a national-level action plan aimed at further accelerating the development of the brain-computer interface industry. The plan sets out to achieve major technological breakthroughs, establish common industry standards by 2027, and form a complete industrial chain by 2030. The goal is to cultivate globally competitive brain-computer interface companies and support a group of innovative small and medium-sized enterprises.

When asked what is driving China's rapid progress in the field of brain-computer interfaces, Peng Lei told TechCrunch that it was attributed to four factors. The first is strong policy support to unify technical standards and medical insurance reimbursement through cross-departmental collaboration. In December 2025, at the Shenzhen International Brain-Computer Interface and Human-Computer Interaction Technology Expo, China announced the establishment of a 11.6 billion yuan (approximately US$165 million) brain science special fund to support the entire process of brain-computer interface companies from research and development to commercialization.

The second factor is abundant clinical resources, including a large patient population and low R&D costs, which accelerate the trial process. China's universal health insurance means that once the country approves a device, it can be commercialized more quickly. In contrast, in the United States, even if the FDA approves a device, private insurance companies, which are the primary payers, must individually approve it before it can be included in reimbursement.

Chinese researchers have completed the country's first clinical trial of a fully implantable wireless brain-computer interface that allows paralyzed patients to control devices without external hardware, China International Television reported. This is the second case in the world, and Neuralink is the first to complete such a trial.

"In terms of traditional electrical signal invasive brain-computer interfaces, Chinese companies have made clinical progress in the fields of movement and language decoding, spinal cord reconstruction, and stroke rehabilitation. As of mid-2025, more than 50 clinical trials of flexible implantable brain-computer interfaces have been completed." Peng Lei said. He added that next-generation technologies are moving toward whole-brain neural decoding and encoding, including ultrasound technology like the one Gestalt is developing.

Peng Lei pointed out that the third factor is China's mature industrial manufacturing capabilities, covering the fields of semiconductors, artificial intelligence and medical hardware, which provides support for rapid research and development and prototyping. The last point is market strategic investment. Driven by the national level, state-owned funds and private capital are pouring in.

Some recent important financing transactions in China’s brain-computer interface industry include: Shanghai-based brain-computer interface startup Ladder Medical completed a 350 million yuan (approximately US$48 million) Series B financing in February 2025. According to media reports, Qiannao Technology, a neurotechnology company that develops non-invasive brain-computer interfaces and bionic limbs, has quietly applied for an IPO in Hong Kong after completing 2 billion yuan (approximately US$287 million) in financing earlier this year. Peng Lei said that Gestalt, which he founded in January this year, is currently negotiating with investors and is about to complete its angel round of financing.

Overall, China’s brain-computer interface startups are accelerating to challenge U.S. industry leaders such as Neuralink, Synchron and Paradromics. The most active companies in the Chinese market include Brain Tiger Technology, Brainland Tech, Ladder Medical, Qiannao Technology, Brainland Technology, Aoyi Tech, Brainland Tech and Zhiran Medical. Their technical routes cover multiple directions from implantable flexible interfaces to non-invasive brain-computer technology.

According to media reports, China's brain-computer interface market size is expected to grow from 3.2 billion yuan in 2024 to more than 3.8 billion yuan (approximately US$530 million) in 2025, and is predicted to exceed 120 billion yuan by 2040.

Outlook

Industry insiders predict that in the next five years, China's brain-computer interface supervision will be further aligned with international standards, focusing on regulatory approval and data sovereignty. Global frameworks developed by bodies such as the International Electrotechnical Commission and the International Organization for Standardization, as well as guidance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, are expected to be key reference points.

Chinese regulators are also expected to tighten oversight of data generated by invasive devices and all brain-computer interface devices, while easing approvals for non-invasive technologies.

Regarding the ethical issues involved in brain implants or control devices, China plans to strengthen informed consent requirements, expand the scope of ethical review beyond the medical field, and promote the establishment of unified technical standards for clinical evaluation.