Gestala's Phoenix Peng Named to Forbes China's 2026 100 Most Influential Chinese Selection, Sole BCI Industry Representative

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zhangguanghua

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Gestala's Phoenix Peng Named to Forbes China's 2026 100 Most Influential Chinese Selection, Sole BCI Industry Representative

On October 26, Forbes China released the results of its "2026 Forbes China 100 Most Influential Chinese Selection." Phoenix Peng (Peng Lei), Founder and CEO of Gestala, was named in the "Value Creator" category, becoming the only corporate leader from the brain-computer interface (BCI) industry to make this year's list.

Phoenix Peng, born in 1980 in Chengdu, is a serial entrepreneur. He holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Science and Technology of China, a master's degree from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at the Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence at Fudan University. He previously founded the restaurant SaaS company Keruyun, which was acquired by Alibaba, after which he served as Senior Vice President of Alibaba Local Services. In 2021, he co-founded NeuroXess, an invasive BCI company. In January 2026, he co-founded Gestala with Tianqiao Chen of Shanda Group and the Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute (TCCI), shifting focus to non-invasive ultrasonic BCI.

Gestala specializes in ultrasonic phased-array technology, enabling non-invasive reading and modulation of brain activity without craniotomy, targeting chronic pain, depression, stroke rehabilitation, and Alzheimer's disease. Within six months of its establishment, the company completed RMB 570 million in cumulative financing, a record for early-stage funding in China's BCI sector, and built a dual-headquarters structure spanning R&D and manufacturing in Chengdu and NeuroAI innovation in Shanghai. Its first product, focused on chronic pain management, is scheduled to begin the NMPA registration process by the end of 2026.

In September, Gestala was the only Chinese company invited to Butterfly Network's inaugural BCI Innovation Summit in Palo Alto, joining global pioneers including Merge Labs. As BCI moves from the lab to the clinic, Peng's inclusion on the Forbes list signals that the ultrasonic approach and the "whole-brain read-write" paradigm are entering a broader global spotlight.

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