Lin Junyang, former head of Alibaba’s Qwen large language model team, has officially founded Pragmatik (p7k) Labs in Shanghai, focusing on next-generation AI Agents. The company received joint lead investment from Gaorong Capital and Sequoia China, with participation from Tencent and the Shanghai Future Industry Fund, achieving a post-money valuation of USD 2 billion. Pragmatik’s domestic operating entity, Pragmatik (Shanghai) Technology Co., Ltd., was incorporated on May 13 and underwent business registration changes on July 1. Gaorong Capital holds 4.25% through Gaorong DAI Holding Limited, Sequoia China holds a combined 5% through multiple entities, and affiliates of the Shanghai Future Industry Fund and Tencent each hold 1%. Vantage Clean Energy International holds 0.75%. Lin Junyang controls approximately 88% of the equity through direct and indirect holdings. Lin, aged 33, was formerly Alibaba’s youngest P10-level technical executive and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Peking University. He joined Alibaba DAMO Academy in 2019 and, at the end of 2022, was appointed to lead the Qwen series development. He departed Alibaba in March this year, officially announcing his exit on March 4 via social media platform X.