When Wang Qian decided to return to China to start a robotics venture two years ago, his former colleagues questioned his judgment. At the time, he was managing his own quantitative fund in the U.S., which was on the verge of significant expansion. Despite the skepticism, Wang remained steadfast in his decision.

In December 2023, he founded Independent Variable Robotics in Shenzhen, adopting an "end-to-end unified VLA large model" approach to realize the vision of embodied general-purpose robots. Within two years, the company completed eight funding rounds. On September 8, 2025, Independent Variable announced a nearly ¥1 billion Series A+ round co-led by Alibaba Cloud and Guoke Investment, marking Alibaba Cloud's first foray into embodied intelligence.

Wang Qian, the founder and CEO, holds a degree from Tsinghua University and is among the earliest scholars to introduce attention mechanisms in neural networks. During his Ph.D., he contributed to multiple robotics research projects at top U.S. labs. Co-founder and COO Yang Qian, Wang's graduate school alum, joined him in 2023, drawn by his unwavering commitment to the field.

Wang acknowledged that robotics entrepreneurship differs vastly from quantitative finance. As the leader of a startup, he must oversee external relations, especially fundraising, to ensure survival. Beyond strategy and technology, he dedicates most of his time to securing capital, citing it as the company's biggest early challenge.

"China's primary market saw a noticeable contraction in 2023 compared to pre-pandemic levels," Wang noted. While Independent Variable's technical prowess rivals U.S. peers, funding gaps remain stark. "We need patient capital and strategic investors for long-term support," he emphasized.

Ji Wei, founding partner of Huaying Capital, an early investor, agreed. She highlighted that while Independent Variable requires substantial R&D funding, its long-term success hinges on technological leadership, product-market fit, and commercialization. "Each funding round raises new expectations. Delivering—or exceeding—market expectations is key," she said.

**Pioneering the Robot's "General Brain"** Wang's inspiration came from OpenAI's GPT-3 during his U.S. tenure. Recognizing breakthroughs in data solutions for robotics, he explored hardware ventures but found U.S. supply chains lacking. In 2023, he returned to China, recruiting Wang Hao (now CTO) to build a team.

Yang Qian recalled Wang's persistence during their first meeting, where he presented a detailed pitch despite health issues. His dedication convinced her and others to join. After securing angel funding from Lenovo Star in December 2023, Independent Variable was officially launched.

The company committed early to an end-to-end VLA model—a controversial choice then. Critics argued for modular or specialized models, doubting startups could bear the risks of large-scale unified models. Initial investors, like Wang Xiao of 9F Capital, admitted backing the team's potential rather than fully endorsing the idea. Wang Xiao praised Wang Qian's foresight in targeting the robot's "operating system."

By October 2024, Independent Variable released its WALL-A model, coinciding with Stanford and Berkeley's π0 model, validating the end-to-end trend. Chen Yu of Yunqi Capital noted Wang's consistency in executing the VLA vision, a decisive factor in their investment.

**Hardware-Software Synergy** With 200+ staff (90% technical), Independent Variable updates models every 2–3 months, evaluating performance based on task complexity and generalization. Progress includes handling high-difficulty tasks like zipping and laundry by late 2024. In September 2025, the company open-sourced its WALL-OSS model, attracting hundreds of developers.

Initially reliant on third-party hardware, the team soon realized hardware limitations hindered model performance. From late 2024, they began developing proprietary hardware, culminating in the Quantum 2 robot unveiled at WRC 2025, showcasing advanced interaction and cleaning capabilities.

**Data: The Industry's Shared Hurdle** Wang Xiao pointed out the scarcity of robot interaction data. Independent Variable addresses this via in-house data factories, emphasizing quality and diversity for training.

**From Funding to Commercialization** Chen Yu anticipates industry consolidation in 2026 as valuations outpace commercial readiness. Independent Variable's "small-step, fast-iteration" strategy—applied to both product development and fundraising—has enabled steady growth. Yang Qian emphasized selective, deep market penetration over broad but shallow expansion.

Quantum 2 is set for small-scale production by December 2025, with full-scale rollout in 2026. Hardware commercialization shifts focus from demos to sellable products, targeting research and industrial sectors. While C-market entry remains distant, the long-term goal is general-purpose home robots.

Wang Qian remains bullish on C-market potential, aiming for early entry while ensuring B-market sustainability. "Our vision is a robot that handles chores like a保姆," Yang Qian added, underscoring their incremental approach from B to C.