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When an overseas factory experiences an unexpected equipment failure at midnight, local engineers can access troubleshooting guidance instantly by scanning a QR code on their mobile phones—without the need for cross-border travel. Meanwhile, even as one lithium battery manufacturer’s production data increased nearly 100-fold, its development efficiency improved several times over.
These outcomes reflect Flexem’s 15-year evolution from a human-machine interface (HMI) manufacturer to a full-stack industrial AIoT solution provider. Recently, we spoke with Xuetong Ma, founder and CEO of Shanghai Flexem Information Technology Co., Ltd., to discuss the company’s growth journey, examine the role of software-defined approaches in industrial automation, and explore Flexem’s three-year roadmap.
Xuetong Ma, Founder and CEO of Shanghai Flexem Information Technology Co., Ltd.
Breaking Through: From HMI to Full Stack, Rejecting “Marginalization”
At its inception, HMI was Flexem’s flagship product. However, Mr. Ma quickly identified a fundamental industry challenge: “Single-product providers will face inevitable marginalization. Customers demand holistic solutions, not fragmented equipment—focusing solely on HMI would eventually marginalize the company and limit it to survival on the fringes of the industry.” Guided by a long-term vision, he led Flexem’s transition toward building full-stack capabilities.
Through a strategy of “independent R&D combined with targeted acquisitions,” the company developed a comprehensive ecosystem spanning the entire automation chain:
Display Layer: HMI, SCADA
Control Layer: PLC
Execution Layer: Servo systems
Takeoff: FBox Born from Customer Demand for “Remote Debugging”
Flexem’s entry into IoT was driven by Mr. Ma’s understanding of customer challenges. Between 2013 and 2014, Chinese equipment manufacturers expanded into Southeast Asia and India while their technical teams remained in China. Cross-border travel for equipment troubleshooting created high costs and slow response times across the industry.
With the emergence of 3G and 4G networks, a customer’s simple question—“Can we debug remotely?”—sparked an opportunity. Mr. Ma responded by launching FBox, described as the company’s first industrial IoT gateway. Supporting more than 300 industrial protocols, FBox connects with diverse controllers and enables remote programming, debugging, and data collection.
The product saw rapid adoption, positioning Flexem as an early mover in this segment and establishing a reference point for industrial IoT deployment.
Core: Software as the Foundation, Countering Hardware Homogenization
According to Mr. Ma, as hardware becomes increasingly standardized, competition has shifted from hardware specifications to software capability. “Today’s competition is no longer about who has a sturdier ‘body,’ but who has a smarter ‘brain’—enabling more functions and faster iteration,” he notes.
He adds, “AI is devouring software.” The expansion of generative AI has accelerated low-code and no-code development, reshaping how industrial software is built and deployed.
Flexem has aligned itself with this shift. With more than 500 employees, including over 150 dedicated to R&D, the company reports holding dozens of software copyrights and 94 patents. Its internally developed core platforms include:
FlexemStudio: Configuration software
FlexCloud: IoT platform
FlexEdge: Edge computing software
As Mr. Ma summarizes, “Hardware is the carrier of software; software is the core competitive edge of hardware.” This approach, he notes, has helped differentiate Flexem in a highly competitive market.
Implementation: AIoT Is Not a “Gimmick”
In Mr. Ma’s view, the transition from IoT to AIoT reflects a shift from making data transmittable to making it intelligent. “IoT focused on connection and data collection—building the industrial equipment’s ‘neural network’—but did not unlock the full value of data. AIoT, by contrast, adds ‘thinking capability,’ identifying issues and offering solutions instead of simply acting as a messenger,” he explains.
This philosophy has guided Flexem’s development since the launch of its integrated IoT solution in 2018. According to Mr. Ma, AIoT must address practical, on-site problems:
“Previously, alarm systems only displayed a code, leaving customers unsure how to respond. Now, AIoT delivers actionable guidance and can link to customer knowledge bases, allowing personnel to access troubleshooting videos through QR codes.”
For one lithium battery customer, Flexem reports that its solution reduced equipment downtime from two hours to 15 minutes and lowered overseas travel costs by sixty percent.
Overhaul: AI Without “Massive Data”
Addressing common barriers to AI adoption, including data quality and scale, Mr. Ma advocates a pragmatic approach: “Traditional deep learning requires massive datasets, but training large models in-house is unrealistic for most automation companies. The investment is high, and the data is limited.”
He highlights the “Agents” model in generative AI, which combines general-purpose language models with domain knowledge bases to address industrial use cases without reliance on massive training datasets.
“People are not born knowing everything—they learn through experience and interaction,” Mr. Ma notes. He argues that this approach mirrors Flexem’s emphasis on domain expertise and customer understanding rather than data volume alone.
Global Expansion: Exporting “China Speed”
Flexem’s global strategy focuses on select growth markets supported by localized teams, channel partners, and an expanding after-sales network. According to Mr. Ma, international service capability has become an important differentiator, particularly for Chinese equipment manufacturers expanding abroad.
“Remote maintenance is important, but on-site response speed matters just as much. A 24-hour response window is a competitive advantage in global markets,” he explains.
He identifies three underlying strengths:
Cost-Performance: Competitive pricing with comparable quality
Agile Service: Faster response than many competitors
Product Adaptability: Broad protocol compatibility
Mr. Ma attributes Flexem’s competitiveness to its experience in China’s demanding domestic market, which he believes has prepared the company for international growth.
Outlook: Motion Control as the Next Focus
Looking ahead, Mr. Ma says, “The automation industry is more than a century old, but Chinese companies are advancing at a rate that feels like three years of progress in one.”
Flexem’s stated objective is to become a major motion control provider within three years, following its acquisition of a dedicated servo team.
“Going forward, we will remain market-driven and continue strengthening our software and AI foundation to support full-stack solutions,” Mr. Ma says. “Empowering enterprises through digital and intelligent transformation remains both Flexem’s mission and my personal commitment.”