Recently, during the 2025 Winter Qiji Chuangtan Roadshow, Li Di, known as the "Father of Microsoft Xiaoice," made his debut as the founder of Nextie (Chinese: Tomorrow's New Journey) in a mysterious closing segment. This is his first appearance as an entrepreneur since leaving Xiaoice in April this year. The new project focuses on "Collective Intelligence and Cognitive Large Models," and Qiji Chuangtan has already invested, with a funding target of several million dollars for the next round.
30 original team members + Collective Intelligence: To build "Cognition" rather than "Knowledge"
Core team: Zeng Min, co-founder of Xiaoice, and Wang Wenlan, head of Xiaoice's large model and algorithm, among more than 10 former Microsoft/Intel architects, with a total team size of about 30 people
Technical approach: Build a group of AI agents with different perspectives, experiences, and cognitive methods to engage in "cognitive collisions" on the same task, resulting in decisions better than those of individual models
Data foundation: Organize all human papers from 1800 to 2020 to form a 220-year "History of Collective Intelligence Evolution" for pre-training and alignment
Product idea: Focus on To C, charge based on "Deliverable Value"
Business model: Refuse to charge by Token; "The value of writing a business plan is different from casual chatting"; pricing will be based on deliverable value, aiming to cover To C, To B, and To G
Internal test case: Facing Yu Minhong's Antarctic open letter, Gemini3 and ChatGPT failed to identify issues, while Nextie's collective intelligence pointed out key vulnerabilities
Release time: Basic technology internal testing is complete, expected to officially launch on January 7, 2026
Funding and valuation: Several million dollars level, Qiji has joined in
Shareholder structure: Qiji Chuangtan is the first investor, Li Di still retains 25% equity in Xiaoice, making him the second-largest shareholder
Next round of financing: Plan to raise "several million dollars," valuation not yet determined, funds will mainly be used for product refinement rather than expansion of staff
Opinion output: The second half of AI is about "Cognition," not "Knowledge"
Li Di emphasized in the roadshow that current large models are good at answering questions but not at thinking and execution. Nextie aims to use collective intelligence to compensate for individual cognitive deficiencies, "defining a new paradigm rather than copying the market." Regarding the AI bubble, he believes the key is a "soft landing"—transforming the bubble into the real economy rather than a hard landing and collapse.
Industry signal: Veteran entrepreneurs return to the front line
Compared to Qiji Chuangtan's average age of 28, Li Di, born in 1979, joked that "he raised the average age," but he believes he has a "simple mindset and isn't seeking jobs." He has a differentiated advantage in cognition and industry insight. With Nextie's official debut, the collective intelligence sector may welcome a new player with emotional computing background and global product experience in the beginning of 2026. AIbase will continue to follow its product release on January 7 and subsequent funding developments.
