The startup, established just two months before its financing, has achieved China’s largest early-stage brain-computer interface round, which was heavily oversubscribed.
Phoenix Peng has previously developed a brain-computer interface company, NeuroXess, which creates implantable BCI systems to restore communication and motor skills in individuals with severe neurological conditions.
His second venture, Gestala, follows a different path: avoiding surgery and implants, utilizing technology that Peng believes could revolutionize the field’s future.
Gestala has raised $21.6 million, about CN¥150 million, only two months post-establishment, with a valuation between $100 million and $200 million, as per Peng’s statement to TechCrunch.
The funding round was co-led by Guosheng Capital and Dalton Venture, with participation from Tsing Song Capital, Gobi Ventures, Fourier Intelligence, Liepin, and Seas Capital. Investor interest significantly outpaced available slots, final commitments exceeding $58 million, making it over 2.5 times oversubscribed.
The company is creating non-invasive brain-computer interface technology using focused ultrasound. Peng claims it tackles a critical barrier to widespread BCI adoption: the need for brain surgery.
Unlike electrode-based implants, ultrasound penetrates the skull, accessing deep neural circuits without incisions. The phased-array ultrasound system can monitor, stimulate, or suppress specific neural activities with precision.
The company states its technology can reach deep neural circuits beyond the capability of implanted surface arrays, modulating larger brain regions simultaneously, potentially enabling applications current BCIs cannot support.
The primary clinical focus is chronic pain management. Existing academic data, according to Peng, indicates ultrasound neuromodulation can substantially reduce pain, targeting a significant population in both China and the US.
Beyond pain, Gestala is exploring applications in mental health, including depression, PTSD, autism spectrum disorder, and OCD, as well as stroke rehabilitation. Longer-term objectives include addressing Alzheimer’s, essential tremor, and Parkinson’s disease.
In total, the company investigates six to eight potential indications, though Peng acknowledges most are in early research stages rather than active clinical trials.
Gestala isn’t the first ultrasound BCI firm globally, with several US-based competitors like Merge Labs, supported by OpenAI, standing as well-financed participants in the field.
However, Peng claims Gestala is a pioneering effort in China, believing the country’s unified manufacturing ecosystem and reduced trial costs provide structural advantages in advancing from prototype to production.
Chinese clinical trials cost about 20 to 33 percent of equivalent studies in the US or Europe, Peng stated. Gestala collaborates with major Chinese hospitals to expedite this research.
In addition to clinical activities, the company is assembling an ‘Ultrasound Brain Bank’, a comprehensive clinical dataset to train AI models in decoding brain signals for future neurological diagnostics.
Peng’s ambition extends beyond China. Despite escalating geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington, he advocates for US-China collaboration in deep tech research, viewing the two nations as complementary: China offers manufacturing integration and trial scale; the US provides top-tier scientific talent.
Whether the political atmosphere permits this vision to unfold remains uncertain.
Nevertheless, this round holds the title for the largest early-stage funding in China’s BCI sector, consistent with the global increase in BCI investment that positions the industry as a key focus in deep tech.
Neuralink, Musk’s implantable BCI firm, raised $600 million at a $9 billion valuation in May 2025. Merge Labs, after OpenAI’s investment in January 2026, is also enhancing its ultrasound program.
The funds from the round will advance research and development, expand the workforce from 15 to around 35 by year-end, and establish a manufacturing facility in China.
Gestala aims to complete its first-generation prototype by the end of 2026.