The Asiabits Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

"Look for a really honest team that is iterating fast. A lot of demos are fake." - Francesco Crivelli

Francesco (23) grew up between Switzerland and Chile, had 30% school attendance, slept in immigrant housing as a teenager - and ended up at UC Berkeley building robots. In 2 months in China, he visited over 500 robotics companies and now builds a platform to deploy robots in the real world.

What we cover:

• Why every hardware founder needs to come to Shenzhen
• The real cost of deploying a robot (hint: the hardware is only 1/5)
• What happened when their robot destroyed a restaurant
• How he ordered 16 motors in 2 hours (try that in the US)
• Why most robotics demos are fake - and what investors should look for

About Francesco Crivelli:
Swiss-Chilean robotics founder, UC Berkeley (EECS), Columbia Engineering. Building a robot deployment platform bridging Silicon Valley software with Shenzhen hardware.

Francesco's company - Intuition Core:
Website: intuition.dev
LinkedIn: Intuition Core
X/Twitter: @intuitioncore

Links:
Newsletter (free, daily): asiabits.com
YouTube: Watch the video version
Thomas on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/afuthomas
Michael on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/michael-broza

"My dog is so lonely at home. I want to fix that." Jacky is 24. He scraped 1 million social media comments, fed them to ChatGPT, and built a smart remote-control ball for dogs in Shenzhen.

Featured at CES 2026 and covered by CNET, PePeHola lets you play with your dog from anywhere in the world. Kickstarter launches February 26.

In this episode, we discuss:

• AI-powered market research: How ChatGPT analyzed 1 million comments to find the real problem
• The InnoX Academy: Backed by DJI's co-founder, only founders under 30 can join
• Shenzhen speed: From 3D-printed prototype to CES in under two years
• Smart design: Why 90% of pet camera owners still can't interact with their pets
• The bone controller: Play with your dog from another country via WiFi
• Next product: A smart collar that detects your dog's emotions and stress

About Jacky & Jay:
Jacky (24) is the co-founder of PePeHola, a smart pet tech startup from Shenzhen's InnoX Academy. Jay handles product discovery for the US market and moved from Korea to join the team.

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asiabits is on a mission to bridge the gap between East and West. We provide non-biased, on-the-ground insights into technology, innovation, and the future of business in Asia.

Subscribe to the asiabits newsletter: asiabits.com

Follow us on LinkedIn:
Thomas
Michael
asiabits

Watch the video version on YouTube: youtu.be/0s3nQ50ZWiY

"It's a rich people sport." Pilates sessions cost $100 each. Monthly memberships run $500. Eric, a designer from Shenzhen, said: "We could do better."

He built a smart, foldable Pilates reformer in his apartment. 48 hours after launching on Kickstarter: $400,000 raised.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The "rich people sport" problem: Why Pilates costs $500/month and how Eric is changing that
• From back pain to business: How chronic desk job pain led to a $400K Kickstarter
• Shenzhen speed: 3D-printed prototype to CES 2026 in one year
• The tech inside: Smart sensors, app integration, and gamification
• $899 vs $3,000: Why traditional reformers are overpriced
• Pilates was invented by a German?! The surprising history
• Thomas' 140kg story: How sports changed everything

About Eric & Tintin:
Eric is a designer and co-founder of Pavo Fitness. After chronic back pain from desk work, he discovered Pilates but couldn't afford the sessions. Tintin is a Pilates instructor who left her 996 (actually "000007" - 24/7) tech job to pursue fitness full-time.

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asiabits is on a mission to bridge the gap between East and West. We provide non-biased, on-the-ground insights into technology, innovation, and the future of business in Asia.

Pavo Fitness Kickstarter: kickstarter.com/projects/pavofitness

Subscribe to the asiabits newsletter: asiabits.com

Follow us on LinkedIn:
Thomas
Michael
asiabits

"Guess how many companies in the US make actuators for robots? Zero." - Tuo Liu, Robotuo

Tuo grew up in Shenzhen, spent a decade in the US designing robotics labs for MIT and Harvard, and moved back to build the largest open-source robotics community connecting global founders with Shenzhen's hardware ecosystem. His maps of 150+ humanoid companies in China went viral. His verdict: the next decade of robotics will be built in the Greater Bay Area.

In this episode:

• "Raise in SF, spend in Shenzhen, sell to the world" - the pattern behind every hardware startup
• Designing robotics labs for MIT, Harvard, and Apple - then realizing all the parts came from China
• Zero actuator manufacturers in the US vs. 50+ in Shenzhen
• Building a community of 270+ global robotics founders
• Why China dominates open source AI (DeepSeek, Qwen)
• 150+ humanoid companies in China - how many will survive?
• Unitree's $20K humanoid vs. $200K competitors
• CES = "Chinese Electronics Show"
• Free prototypes in one week from Shenzhen factories
• #1 advice: make friends, set up a local team

Connect with Tuo:

• X/Twitter: @Robo_Tuo
• LinkedIn
• robotuo.com

About Asiabits: Weekly insider stories from Asia's tech & startup ecosystem. Subscribe: asiabits.com

"I believe I will do it." - Irving Gao, Sweekar

200 people received Irving's first AI robot. One month later, only 1 was still using it. He crashed, pivoted, took out ¥2,000,000 (~$300,000) in personal loans, and built Sweekar – the world's first physically growing AI pocket pet. CES media called it "breaking news."

In this episode:

• How he gave up a PhD at USTC to take out a $300K loan and start a company
• Working at Unitree Robotics, SenseTime & Shanghai AI Lab before going solo
• The first product that completely failed: 200 units shipped, 1 user after 30 days
• The gamification design course that changed everything
• Why he's building the "Nintendo of AI" – not the iPhone of AI
• How Sweekar physically grows: Egg → Baby → Teen → Adult (MBTI personality)
• CES 2026: media calling it "breaking news"
• Why USA before China – the DJI & Anker playbook
• Kickstarter: May 2026, $100–150

About Irving Gao (高鸿志):
Founder & CEO of Takway AI, Shenzhen. Ex-Unitree Robotics, SenseTime, Shanghai AI Lab. Dropped his guaranteed PhD at USTC to build emotionally intelligent AI companions.

Follow Sweekar:
Instagram: @sweekar_pocket_pet
Website: takway.ai

Links:
Watch on YouTube: youtu.be/Afwd6TGXQr4
Newsletter (free, daily): asiabits.com
Thomas on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/afuthomas
Michael on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/michael-broza