Dr. Yichun Cheng joins LinkZill as Chief Strategy Officer!

About a year ago, Dr. Yichun Cheng played a pivotal role in the decision to invest in LinkZill at Apricot Capital. By transitioning from Apricot Capital to LinkZill, he has shifted from a supporting role to actively engaging in the company's mission.

Dr. Yichun Cheng holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Tsinghua University. He was a senior investment manager at Apricot Capital and a consultant at IQVIA China Management Consulting team.

While studying for his Ph.D., he participated in the 863 Key State Research and Development Program where he built a high-content screening system based on super-resolution optical imaging and microarray chips. He accumulated rich experience in the research and development of high-end life science instruments.

After graduating from his Ph.D., he first joined the management consulting department of IQVIA. He experienced various project types, including NRDL, NPP, corporate governance, production capacity planning, etc., and he accumulated rich experience in strategic design and corporate governance of leading companies in the life science industry, especially multinational companies. In 2021, he joined Apricot Capital to engage in early investment in life science instruments and medical devices. Within two and a half years, he led investments in six projects with a cumulative investment of 200 million yuan.

Dr. Qiang Jing, managing partner of Apricot Capital, said:

Since its establishment, Apricot Capital has been dedicated to becoming the best entrepreneurial partner for its investees. We have recruited exceptional young talents from top schools worldwide to build China's most cutting-edge life science innovation enterprises alongside us.

There are people like Yichun who are full of creativity, in-depth thinking, and continuous exploration. Yichun serves partner companies in Apricot Capital in another form of industrial involvement, continuing to empower the industry in the Apricot family. I am pleased that Yichun is also serving Apricot Capital's partner companies in another form of industrial involvement, further empowering the industry within the Apricot family.

LinkZill is a unique company. Linrun captured a powerful "Innovation Alliance" in the field of bio-semiconductor, which is full of a sense of destiny and dazzling strength to cultivate land as a pioneer. Apricot Capital is fortunate to move forward with LinkZill and believes that Yichun's joining will further deepen the connection and trust between Apricot Capital and LinkZill. This partnership aims to link technology and innovation in order to incubate exceptional life science semiconductor products.

We treat every member of our family with respect and sincerity, inspiring them to stay until they are strong enough to leave. I strongly believe that a company's core asset is its talent. The more exceptional talents there are, the more growth space they should be given. In order to sustain the momentum of the company, it is crucial to maintain a spirit of exploration. I sincerely wish Yichun all the best as he continues to explore, believe, and create new opportunities.

Dr. Yichun Cheng, Chief Strategy Officer of LinkZill said:

It was never a tough decision for me to join LinkZill. Since Apricot Capital became a shareholder of LinkZill, I have always positioned myself as LinkZill’s most sincere friend. Now I just go one step further and devote myself wholeheartedly to LinkZill’s story. This is also a great gift I give myself in my 30s.

I firmly believe in LinkZill’s goals. The development of life sciences is constantly driven by technologies in other fields. TFT is the next basic tool that has the potential to be deeply embedded in the development of life sciences. This is the path chosen by LinkZill. Despite being a relatively new path, TFT demonstrates a high level of compatibility with the life science industry when viewed from a first principles perspective. As we progress on this journey, we will undoubtedly encounter numerous difficulties and challenges in the future. We may even need to reshape industry norms. However, there will always be individuals who are willing to venture into this uncertain territory. There is no shortcut to success, and LinkZill will firmly do “difficult but right things” for a long time.

I firmly believe in LinkZill’s team. It's a pleasure to work with a group of colleagues who are idealistic but highly executive. Professionalism, flexibility, and pragmatism are the characteristics of the LinkZill team, and they are also my observations and understanding as a shareholder for the past one and half years. In this impetuous society full of temptations, these characteristics are particularly valuable. The goal of LinkZill is ambitious, but the road must be walked slowly. While enthusiasm is important, it is difficult to establish a firm foundation based on it alone. However, when combined with a team of dedicated and resilient colleagues, we can gain the confidence needed to succeed. Here, I would also like to express my special thanks to Dr. Kang Kang, who is now a partner of LinkZill. We met at BGI ten years ago. At that time, he was full of passion in my eyes and was a leader in the life sciences industry. Ten years later, his status in LinkZill has not changed at all. He is still the sharpest KK. Next, we will continue to pursue the right path in our eyes in LinkZill.

Finally, from Apricot Capital to LinkZill, this is a step I have taken, and it is also a step taken by Apricot Capital and LinkZill. We will work closely to explore new cooperative methods between investors and portfolios.

Dr. Kang Kang, Partner & CBio of LinkZill, said:

Yichun and I have known each other for ten years, during his studies under the supervision of Dr. Ni Ming, who later became a founding engineer at MGI. At that time, I switched from decoding the genome to writing the code of life. It was also at that time when Yichun, an undergraduate student studying optoelectronic physics, embarked on his journey into the field of life sciences. We both actively chose to embrace great uncertainty in the epic time.

Yichun is one of the rare friends and peers who makes me admit that his trolling skills and technical taste are on the same level as mine. It was not until earlier this year that I admitted to him that I had trouble staying in my original role. Yichun asked me what I wanted to do in the future. I answered, "please introduce me to some companies related to semiconductors, microfluidics, and spectroscopy. I feel the need to build life science tools of the next era." This is precisely Yichun's profession. That was when the name LinkZill came into my view. Ten years later, our storylines finally intersected again.

In times of uncertainty, we both took the initiative to make choices to embrace uncertainty. And then, in order to increase the certainty of our choices, we put in 100% effort and became partners that can rely on each other. This is our common choice in the past, and it will be our common story in the future.

Dr. Linrun Feng, Founder & Co-CEO of LinkZill said：

Within the span of six months, four highly accomplished biology doctors have joined LinkZill. Kangkang (University of Hong Kong, China), Junying (MPI for Terrestrial Microbiology, Germany), Xiao Ye (University of Bordeaux, CNRS-France), and Yichun (Tsinghua University, China) today.

The essence and enchantment of LinkZill have always resided in its vision: "引领科技，挚诚如一" in Chinese and "Linking zillions of people and technology, linking zillions of hearts with love" in English. The arrival of like-minded partners, one after another, surpasses any explanation.

The intelligence, hard work, wisdom, drive, ambition, and sense of social responsibility possessed by Yichun embody the qualities that young individuals should aspire to. This also impresses upon me the weight of responsibility and the pressure to guide new team members. I eagerly anticipate Yichun's growth at LinkZill and my own personal growth through interactions with such an exceptional young individual.

Yichun hails from Apricot Capital, an investor in LinkZill, just as Gaoya comes from Zhenfund. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to Apricot Capital for their support of Yichun. LinkZill and I will safeguard this trust.

Welcome, Yichun! May you flourish in the nurturing environment of LinkZill, experiencing both sunshine and rain and become a pillar of strength for China!

Dr. Yixing Yang, Partner & Co-CEO of LinkZill said：

We are deeply honored and inspired by the way his past recognition of LinkZill's bio-semiconductor revolution has turned into a formidable motivation to achieve our dream together.