Zhaopeng Chen

Overview

Zhaopeng Chen is the co-founder and chief executive of Agile Robots SE, a Munich-headquartered robotics company founded in 2018 as a spin-off from DLR, the German Aerospace Center. According to the company's own website and to the business portal Onpulson, he trained in China, completed his doctorate jointly with DLR's Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics in 2012 and worked at DLR for several years before founding Agile Robots with fellow DLR researcher Peter Meusel. Under his leadership the company announced a USD 220 million Series C led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 in September 2021 at a valuation above USD 1 billion, and it has since grown through a series of acquisitions in robotics and industrial automation. He matters to the DACH ecosystem as one of the few Germany-based founder-CEOs to carry a publicly funded research technology through to a unicorn and then to a consolidating industrial robotics group.

Why this entity matters

Chen's profile is a useful case study in research commercialisation. Wikipedia and the company describe Agile Robots as a DLR spin-off, and Onpulson records that Chen was already deputy head of a robotics laboratory at DLR's institute and a co-founder of the earlier hand-robotics company Wessling Robotics before 2018. His path therefore runs from laboratory research through a first spin-out to a venture-backed platform company, which is the route that policymakers say Germany should make easier.

A second reason is the international shape of the company he leads. Startuprad.io's profile describes a Munich headquarters with a second location in Beijing, and the company website lists regional headquarters in Palo Alto, Beijing and Bengaluru with production in Germany, China and India. Börsen-Zeitung describes Agile Robots as employing more than 2,300 people. For founders and investors in robotics and deep tech, Chen is therefore a reference point for how a European robotics company can scale through acquisitions rather than organic growth alone.

Career and background

Education and research. Onpulson lists a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and automation (2005) and a master's degree in mechatronic engineering (2007), both from the Harbin Institute of Technology in China, and a doctorate in mechatronic engineering in 2012 earned jointly with DLR's Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics and Harbin Institute of Technology. Startuprad.io's Agile Robots profile names the same university and the 2012 doctorate. At DLR he worked on robotic hands and arms and, according to Agile Robots, was deputy director of the Modular Dexterous Robotics Laboratory, a role Onpulson dates from 2010.

Wessling Robotics. Onpulson lists him as chief technology officer and co-founder of Wessling Robotics GmbH from 2013, and Börsen-Zeitung says the company commercialised a human-like robotic hand developed at DLR and was co-founded with Peter Meusel. Börsen-Zeitung also reports that Agile Robots took over Wessling Robotics in 2023; that detail rests on a single source and is not independently verified.

Agile Robots. Agile Robots was founded in Munich in 2018 by Chen and Meusel, together with further DLR experts according to the company; Wikipedia lists Chen and Meusel as the founders, and Onpulson lists Chen as chief executive since 2018. After the 2021 Series C, Wikipedia records that Agile Robots became majority shareholder of the BMW spin-off idealworks in October 2023, acquired the insolvent Franka Emika in November 2023 and bought the remaining idealworks shares in September 2025. Börsen-Zeitung adds the acquisition of the audio-AI company audEERING in March 2025 and a majority stake in Bär Automation in 2023, and the company website lists further acquisitions including Krause Automation and XNG Automation. Revenue of about EUR 300 million for 2025 has been attributed to Chen in industry reporting; this is a company figure and is not independently verified.

Role in the ecosystem

Within the DACH ecosystem Chen operates at the intersection of deep-tech research, industrial automation and growth capital. He leads a venture-backed robotics group that combines robot arms, humanoid and mobile robots, control software and acquired system integrators, and he is a visible example of the transfer path from DLR to industry alongside other spin-offs from German research institutions.

Selected relationships and affiliations

Publicly reported relationships include Peter Meusel, co-founder of Agile Robots and, per Börsen-Zeitung, of Wessling Robotics; Agile Robots SE itself, which Chen leads and which has its own record at https://www.startuprad.io/entities/agile-robots ; DLR and its Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics as his research base; SoftBank Vision Fund 2 as lead investor of the 2021 Series C, with Sequoia Capital China, Hillhouse and Linear Capital named among other investors by Wikipedia and Startuprad.io and Foxconn and Xiaomi cited as strategic backers; and the acquired businesses Franka Robotics, idealworks and audEERING. These relationships are listed as reported by third parties and are not a verified current capitalization table.

Startuprad.io relevance

Startuprad.io's Meet Germany's Unicorns series opens with a profile of Agile Robots, published in March 2026, that names Chen as chief executive since 2018 and summarises his education, the company's origin at DLR and its 2021 unicorn round. The post is a company profile built on public material rather than a recorded interview with Chen; it links to an external English-language interview with him. Its automatically generated summary text describes Chen as the sole founder, whereas the main body and Wikipedia name Peter Meusel as co-founder, so this record follows the main body. This record does not claim that Chen has been a Startuprad.io interview guest.

Public source context

This record draws on Agile Robots' own website https://www.agile-robots.com/en/about-us/ , Wikipedia, Onpulson, Börsen-Zeitung, an HSG founder spotlight and Startuprad.io's own profile. The education details rest on Onpulson and Startuprad.io, the Wessling Robotics takeover on Börsen-Zeitung alone, and financial figures are as reported by outlets and have not been independently verified. This record presents professional information only.

Startuprad.io coverage

Meet Germany's Unicorns Post 1: Agile Robots
Published: 15 March 2026
Last updated: 20 September 2026
Coverage type: Pillar Profile
https://www.startuprad.io/post/meet-germany-s-unicorns-post-1-agile-robots-founder-interview

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Canonical record: https://www.startuprad.io/entities/zhaopeng-chen .