Shenzhen – often touted as the Silicon Valley of China – is known for attracting a lofty number of entrepreneurs. It seems that an increasing amount of these businesspeople are actually ‘sea turtles’ or haigui, a term for overseas Chinese who have returned home.
The story of two University of Pennsylvania graduates, Jason Gui and Tiantian Zhang, who returned to China after graduation to start their smart eyewear company was outlined in an NBC article published last week.
On a three-month trip to Shenzhen, the duo apparently accomplished more than they could have in a year in San Francisco. Gui stated that Silicon Valley was “a little bit slow for us…if you were to do this in the US, you would just be importing the same materials from China anyway.”
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According to China Statistical Yearbook, in 2013 the return rate of Chinese international students peaked at around 85%. The main factors for moving back home were attributed to China’s booming economic growth and to reunite with family and friends.
Silicon Valley is well-known for its tireless work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit, which has lead Western critics to often debate about the work-life balance of employees. However, China’s pace of work is equally, if not more, demanding. In recent years, it has become more and more common for employees at tech companies to work a ‘996’ schedule, that is, working from 9am to 9pm, six days a week. Some people in the PRC point out that working round the clock leads to more things getting done. Entrepreneurs like Gui appreciate the quick pace at which new prototypes are churned out, the proximity to manufacturers and the ease of transactions.
Another appealing factor is the low overhead costs of starting a company in the Middle Kingdom. Wang Mengqiu, the founder of Shanghai-based drone company Zero Zero Robotics, spent a couple of years working at Facebook and Twitter after earning a doctorate from Stanford University in California. Now he works in China, and the average annual salary of his 40-person team is USD8,750. This low cost would not be possible in the Valley.
As China looks to attract more top talent, experts are cognizant of a potential US brain drain. James Lewis of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank, acknowledges that current efforts to retain talent are being hurt by the uncertainty of US immigration policies and China’s alluring incentives for graduates to return home.
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[Cover image via Unsplash]
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