Beijing's "First Physical AI Stock" Goes Public: Digital Twin Company 51WORLD Lists in Hong Kong With Market Cap Exceeding US$1.98 Billion

Beijing-based digital twin technology company 51WORLD Digital Technology Co., Ltd. has officially debuted on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, becoming widely referred to as China's first publicly listed "Physical AI" company. The company trades under the ticker 2519.HK, with an IPO price of HK$30.50 (approx. US$3.94) per share.

Shares opened strongly on the first trading day at HK$35 (approx. US$4.52), representing a 14.75% premium to the offer price, and continued to climb thereafter. As of late morning trading, the stock was up 23.87% to HK$37.78 (approx. US$4.88), giving the company a market capitalization of approximately HK$15.352 billion (approx. US$1.98 billion).

A "Little Giant" Specialist With Ambitions to "Clone the Earth"

Founded in 2015, 51WORLD is a nationally recognized "Specialized, Refined, Differentiated and Innovative" (SRDI) "Little Giant" enterprise in China. The company's core capabilities span three key technology domains: 3D graphics, physical simulation and modeling, and artificial intelligence.

51WORLD is the first company in China's digital twin sector to propose and continuously execute the "Earth Cloning Plan", a long-term initiative aimed at building a 1:1 digital replica of the physical world. The company's vision is to deliver comprehensive digital twin solutions to enterprises, developers, and individual users.

According to a Frost & Sullivan report, based on 2024 revenue, 51WORLD is China's largest digital twin solutions provider, and also the country's largest provider of design and operational optimization solutions within the digital twin space.

Revenue Growth Continues, Losses Persist as R&D Takes Priority

Financial disclosures show that 51WORLD's revenue increased from RMB 170 million (approx. US$24.3 million) in 2022 to RMB 287 million (approx. US$41.0 million) in 2024. Despite steady top-line growth, the company remains loss-making, primarily due to sustained investment in research and development, as well as higher sales and marketing expenses aimed at brand building and customer acquisition.

Net proceeds from the global offering amounted to approximately HK$653 million (approx. US$84.4 million). According to the prospectus, around 80% of the funds will be allocated to R&D over the next three years, including plans to recruit 50 to 100 additional R&D personnel. The remaining funds will be used for marketing initiatives and general working capital. Three Core Platforms Form the Business Backbone

51WORLD's operations are built around three major platforms:

51Aes: Launched in 2015, this digital twin platform is the company's primary revenue driver, accounting for over 79% of total revenue in each of the past three and a half years. It provides industry information modeling solutions across a wide range of sectors, from urban infrastructure to industrial applications.

51Sim: Introduced in 2017, this synthetic data and simulation platform focuses on simulation testing and AI training for use cases such as autonomous driving and robotics.

51Earth: Launched in 2022, the digital Earth platform is designed to foster a developer ecosystem and support broader application development.

Shareholders and Customers Overlap

Notably, AI chipmaker Moore Threads is both a shareholder and a major customer of 51WORLD. Following the IPO, Moore Threads holds approximately 0.5% of the company's shares and was 51WORLD's largest customer in 2023, contributing 15.9% of annual revenue.

Another major AI player, SenseTime Group, holds a 2.2% stake in the company post-listing. Meanwhile, Li Yi, founder, chairman, and CEO of 51WORLD, controls approximately 23.3% of the company's voting rights.

Source：Intelligent things