What Empower does

Empower (嘉强, Jiaqiang (Shanghai) Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd.) is a Shanghai-based industrial platform company founded in 2009 that provides integrated laser intelligent manufacturing subsystems to laser equipment OEMs, system integrators, and end-user manufacturers across 20+ industries including consumer electronics, lithium battery, automotive, aerospace, photovoltaic, shipbuilding, and steel structures. The company claims 60-70% global market share in laser cutting heads and has shipped over 200,000 laser heads cumulatively since founding, with 30,000+ devices running its xEOS operating system in the field.

The company operates a three-pillar architecture: A+B intelligent subsystems (RayTools branded software such as XC3000-XC6000 CNC controllers paired with BS-CAT cutting heads, BW/BF/BG/BH welding heads, and GF multi-axis heads) sold as integrated software-hardware solutions; K+N industry suites providing sector-specific turnkey configurations; and C+S after-sales services delivered through the 51laser full-stack local service network. The proprietary xEOS edge operating system — built on a dual-engine design with OpenHarmony as the non-real-time edge layer and a real-time Hucheng motion control layer with nanosecond-level response — supports the xAPP application ecosystem (50+ third-party process apps) and AI capabilities including the LaserGPT agent and Zhixin IoT platform. The business model combines hardware sales (laser heads, welding heads, control systems), one-time software licenses (XC series CNC), recurring xEOS/xAPP subscriptions, and professional services through RayService.

Empower employs 500+ people across eight global offices including a US subsidiary established in 2022, raising 90 million RMB in Series A (2022) and 320 million RMB in Series B (2024), with an additional state-investor-backed round in February 2025. The company is constructing a 33,333 sqm Suzhou smart factory (groundbreaking October 2024, expected Q1 2026 operations) targeting over 1 billion RMB in annual output, and has received National Key Specialized Little Giant Enterprise designation from China's MIIT in 2025. Strategic partnerships with Huawei (OpenHarmony integration), Swiss RayTools (2014), German KUGLER (2010), and Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2018) underpin its technology and distribution position.

Name

Empower

Legal name

嘉强（上海）智能科技股份公司

Website

https://empower.cn

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Empower (嘉强) is a Shanghai-based laser intelligent manufacturing platform founded in 2009 that provides integrated software-hardware subsystems (RayTools cutting/welding heads, xEOS edge operating system, CNC controllers) to laser equipment OEMs, system integrators, and manufacturers across 20+ industries, claiming 60-70% global share in laser cutting heads.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Laser Manufacturing Equipment

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Computer Systems Design Services (541512)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Process Control & Automation Electronics Manufacturing Services (PLCs, I/O, DCS/SCADA hardware) (IMAGAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Embedded & HMI Electronics Manufacturing (Industrial PCs, HMIs, Panel PCs) (IMAGAGAD), Industrial IoT/Edge Electronics Manufacturing (Gateways, Edge Controllers) (IMAGAGAC)

Keywords

• Laser cutting heads
• Laser welding heads
• CNC control systems
• Edge operating system
• Laser intelligent manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Shanghai

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Laser Processing Hardware (BT Laser Transmission): Sale of laser processing heads including cutting heads (BS-CAT, BT series), welding heads (BW, BF, BG, BH series), GF multi-axis heads, and accessories. Hardware products span power ranges from 1.5kW to 100kW.
2. CNC Software Systems (AT Intelligent Control): Sale of CNC control software systems (XC3000, XC4000, XC5000, XC6000 series) for laser cutting, tube cutting, and welding applications. Software supports EtherCAT bus and pulse servo control.
3. xEOS/xAPP Software Platform Subscription: Subscription and licensing of xEOS platform and xAPP applications for industrial IoT, MES, ERP, and process management. xAPP ecosystem provides domain-specific applications for laser manufacturing.
4. RayService C+S After-sales Service: 51laser full-stack local service including spare parts, consumables, maintenance, and repair services for laser equipment. Provided through online/offline integration.
5. A+B+C Integrated Solutions: Bundled solutions combining Automation software (A), Beam hardware (B), and Connectivity services (C). Sold as complete subsystems targeting specific manufacturing applications like cutting, welding, and cladding.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Empower (嘉强) is a laser intelligent manufacturing empowerment platform that designs, manufactures, and sells integrated A+B subsystems combining proprietary CNC control software (AT series) with laser head hardware (BT series cutting heads and BW/BF/BG/BH welding heads) for industrial laser cutting, welding, multi-axis processing, and additive manufacturing applications. The platform is built on the proprietary xEOS (嘉强鸿) edge operating system that supports an xAPP ecosystem of 50+ domain-specific applications, complemented by K+N industry solution suites and C+S (51laser) full-stack after-sales services spanning spare parts, maintenance, and predictive support.

Product overview

Empower (嘉强) is a laser intelligent manufacturing赋能型平台企业 (empowerment platform) founded in 2009. The company operates a platform-plus-modules architecture built on the xEOS edge operating system. The core product families are organized under three main lines: AT智控软件 (control software: XC3000S, XC6000, XW100, XC4000 series), BT激光传导 (laser delivery: BS-CAT series cutting heads, BT series, BM series, GF series multi-axis, and comprehensive welding heads including BW, BF, BG, BH, BC, GW series), and CT工艺物联 (process IoT: LaserGPT AI agent, xMES, xERP). Supporting these are DT运控智能 (motion control: xStudio, xNCI, xPLC), ET电控总线 (control bus: EDQ, EDS, EPN series), and the xEOS开放平台 ecosystem with xAPP applications. The company also provides K+N industry solutions and C+S after-sales services. The flagship A+B intelligent subsystems integrate RayTools software with laser head hardware for cutting, welding, and multi-axis applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RayTools锐图: A+B intelligent subsystem brand combining software and laser head products for cutting and welding applications
• RayKits锐工
• RayService激光无忧
• xEOS嘉强鸿
• xAPP
• LaserGPT
• RayPlus
• RayOpen产学研智造学社
• 智信APP

Products and services

• BS06K-CAT High-Power Intelligent Cutting Head 6kW intelligent laser cutting head with EtherCAT bus communication, analog/pulse focus control, and wireless network connectivity for real-time sensor data monitoring. Designed for industrial laser cutting equipment manufacturers and end-users requiring precision control.
• BS12K-CAT High-Power Intelligent Cutting Head 12kW intelligent laser cutting head featuring EtherCAT bus communication, smart sensors with wireless monitoring, and compatibility with various mainstream laser sources for industrial cutting applications.
• BS20K-CAT High-Power Intelligent Cutting Head 20kW intelligent laser cutting head with dual focus range options, EtherCAT communication, and smart sensor monitoring for industrial cutting applications requiring higher power.
• BS30K-CAT High-Power Intelligent Cutting Head 30kW intelligent laser cutting head designed for ultra-high power laser cutting with thermal lens compensation and stable cutting quality for thick plate industrial applications.
• BT210S Mid-Low Power Cutting Head 2kW mid-low power manual focus laser cutting head with QBH/QCS interface compatibility and optimized optics and airflow design for improved cutting quality.
• BT220 Mid-Low Power Cutting Head 3.3kW mid-low power laser cutting head with lightweight and compact design, positioned as an economic choice for medium-power laser cutting applications.
• BG03S Galvo Scanner Welding Head 3kW galvo scanner laser welding head for remote scanning welding with standard XY2-100 digital galvo input, high-precision galvo motors, and customizable processing trajectories.
• BH03K Single Galvo Handheld Welding Head 3kW single galvo handheld laser welding head integrating cutting, weld cleaning, and remote cleaning functions, featuring safety protection and optional dual wire feeding.
• BG04K/BG06K Galvo Scanner Welding Head 4kW/6kW galvo scanner laser welding head for remote scanning, high-speed welding with customizable trajectories, applicable for new energy battery manufacturing.
• BF12K/BF20K Oscillating Welding Head 12kW/20kW high-power oscillating laser welding head with dual motor oscillation, CCD monitoring interface, and four-way lens temperature monitoring with alarm output.
• LaserGPT Intelligent Agent (xEOS-xSmart) AI agent system for laser manufacturing leveraging large language models for task planning, semantic understanding, and knowledge retrieval. Integrates laser manufacturing domain knowledge, models, and data to enable intelligent interaction with humans, machines, and systems.
• xMES Manufacturing Execution System (xEOS-xSuite) Manufacturing execution system software for real-time production data collection, quality tracking, part traceability, and lean production management deployed as part of the xEOS platform stack.
• xStudio Development Platform IEC61131-3 compliant motion control development platform enabling logic control (PLC), motion control, CNC, and robot control programming for industrial automation solution development.
• xPLC Real-Time Controller Real-time PLC controller with reliable performance, extensive task configuration, large variable pool, complex logic operations, and standard library for industrial control systems.
• XC6000 High-Power Flat Laser Cutting CNC System High-power flat laser cutting CNC system with features including sense-free piercing, piercing slag removal, shared edge overcut, vibration suppression, sharp corner lift-off, and trace-less micro-connection for industrial cutting operations.
• XW100 Flat Welding CNC System Welding CNC system for sheet metal welding applications, supporting XYZ and exchange table platforms with PSO teaching functions, widely used in new energy and other industries.
• EDK-3000 Embedded Cutting/Welding System Embedded cutting/welding multi-function system replacing plasma/flame cutting, suitable for simple sheet metal processing, cutting prototyping, and welding applications.
• GF101 3D Robot Manual Focus Cutting Head 3D robot manual focus laser cutting head with built-in servo drive unit, 15mm auto-follow stroke, frameless motor direct drive, full closed-loop control, and 0.05mm precision for robotic cutting applications.
• RayTools (锐图) A+B Intelligent Subsystem A+B intelligent subsystem brand combining RayTools software with laser head products. Integrates XC6000, XC5000, XW100 systems with BS-CAT, BW, BF series heads for cutting, welding, and multi-axis laser processing applications.
• RayKits (锐擎) K+N Industry Suites Industry-specific solution suites including K1智运动 (robotics), K2智激光 (embedded control), K3激智云 (edge computing), K4机智云 (machine cloud), and K5云智造 (cloud deployment) covering multiple vertical markets.
• RayService (激光无忧) C+S After-Sales Service (51laser) Full-stack local after-sales service brand including spare parts, consumables, maintenance, and repair services for laser equipment. Delivered through the 51laser network combining online and offline support channels.

Quantifiable outcome

• Material utilization rate increased to 87% in Kunshan deployment
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability10 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Huawei HarmonyOS (华为鸿蒙)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2025Empower's xEOS platform integrates with Huawei's OpenHarmony (开源鸿蒙) operating system. The company showcased its A+B+C strategy at Huawei Developer Conference 2025. xEOS uses OpenHarmony as the non-real-time edge layer for data aggregation and cloud coordination, with xEOS being positioned as a key industrial manufacturing application under OpenHarmony's ecosystem.
• Feishu (飞书, by ByteDance)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Feishu collaborated with Empower at Huawei Developer Conference 2025, presenting 'wild-caught shrimp + farmed shrimp' AI assistant combinations through Feishu's Miaoda platform, demonstrating enterprise AI productivity tools in the manufacturing sector.
• Shenzhen Information Vocational and Technical College (深圳信息职业技术学院)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 December 2024Shenzhen Empower and Shenzhen Information Vocational and Technical College engaged in school-enterprise exchange activities. The partnership covers student internship bases, enterprise mentor participation in teaching, and industry-research collaboration projects.
• Shanghai Jiao Tong University (上海交通大学)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018In 2018, Empower and Shanghai Jiao Tong University jointly established a Laser Intelligent Manufacturing Research Institute, providing academic research support and talent development for the company's technology development.
• RayTools (Switzerland)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2014In 2014, Shanghai Empower established strategic cooperation with Swiss company RayTools and built a RayTools production base in China. This partnership led to the RayTools product line including BT manual focus heads and BS-CAT intelligent cutting heads. The RayTools brand became the hardware pillar of the A+B subsystem strategy.
• KUGLER (Germany)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2010In 2010, Shanghai Empower established a strategic partnership with German company KUGLER, gaining access to German precision optical technology for laser processing applications.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves15 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• IPG Photonics: World's leading fiber-laser source manufacturer supplying OEMs and integrators worldwide. Adjacent to Empower's laser-head business as the upstream supplier whose components Empower integrates into cutting and welding systems.
• Coherent Corp: US-headquartered global photonics leader supplying laser components and systems to industrial, medical, and semiconductor markets. Broad incumbent in the broader laser manufacturing ecosystem intersecting Empower's supply chain and end markets.
• Mazak: Japanese manufacturer of multi-tasking machine tools including laser cutting systems with proprietary automation and control software. Broad incumbent overlapping Empower in high-power laser cutting.
• Trumpf: German technology leader in industrial lasers and machine tools, with vertically integrated laser sources, cutting heads, and software. Broad incumbent in Empower's addressable market with much larger scale and global reach.
• Amada: Japanese global leader in metalworking machinery including laser cutting systems. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering integrated laser cutting solutions competing for the same end-manufacturer customers.

Direct peers

• Bystronic: Swiss-headquartered global leader in sheet-metal cutting and bending, offering laser cutting systems with proprietary heads, software, and automation. Directly competes in Empower's high-power laser cutting segment globally.
• Han's Laser (大族激光): China's largest integrated laser equipment manufacturer, offering laser cutting, welding, and marking machines alongside laser heads and control systems. Directly comparable as a Chinese laser intelligent-manufacturing platform competing across Empower's full stack.
• MAX Photonics (创鑫激光): Chinese fiber-laser manufacturer with growing presence in laser cutting heads and integrated solutions. Comparable as a domestic competitor targeting Empower's customer base with bundled source-plus-head offerings.
• Raycus (锐科激光): China's leading domestic fiber-laser source maker, increasingly expanding into laser heads and complete systems. Comparable as a domestic Chinese competitor moving up the stack into Empower's territory.
• HG Laser (华工激光): Subsidiary of HGTECH and one of China's leading laser equipment manufacturers, producing laser cutting/welding systems, laser heads, and automation solutions. Highly comparable product portfolio and customer base to Empower.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors8 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Empower