Chengdu, China – High-tech and entrepreneurship capital?

You might have noticed the tiny news on our website that our CEO, Gorazd, is heading to Chengdu, China this past week. In case you missed it and need a refresher, Gorazd was invited by TechTour to lead the keynote as the captain of one of the most visible EU innovative young companies – our very own Elaphe.

Now, remember, this is one of those icebreaker moments, when you’re doing something new and exciting in uncharted waters. Why do I say this – because this summit was the First EU-China Tech Scale-up Summit ever, proudly organized by the great team behind TechTour, the leading EU entrepreneurial network along side the Chinese CDHT and EUPIC. The purpose was clear – to help shape the capital chain fostering the new global economy, one that allows growth and scale for the most innovative and entrepreneurial endeavors.

The event was delicately balanced – there were 40 presenting companies –  20 from the EU, and 20 from China. And lots of distinguished guests in the audience.

You might be wondering, why was Elaphe featured as a keynote?

It’s because we identified China as a key market for EVs already back in 2007 – during the time of our first official visit to Chengdu. And we followed up on our strategy years later – once our ground-breaking technology was mature enough for the market – opening a joint-venture company in China in partnership with the largest Asian brake manufacturer. We were also part of the summit’s high level political talks, accompanying the event, where the CEO and founder of TechTour named Elaphe as an example of  a potential EU unicorn company (to achieve over 1 bln EUR valuation – what a great vote of confidence).

We really love events like this, it’s where you can see the passion and motivation behind every endeavor – be it the organizers or the presenting companies. It’s pure entrepreneurship – and there’s an abundance of it both in Europe and in China.

The venue was the fascinating building of the CCEC – The Business and Innovation Centre for China-Europe Cooperation.

 

The center serves as a platform for the western part of China to cooperate with Europe in trade, investment and technology. It is also home to a theater, a gallery for international art and a Chinese-European entrepreneur’s association.

As with all inter-continental events of such magnitude, the ECTSS was not lacking high-level politician talks. Elaphe took  part in the meetings – what a great atmosphere!

What we really enjoy is also discussing with other developers. You know, that’s that instrumental sharing of experiences, that gives you that extra boost in motivation, but also perspective. We think this is the essence of cultural and business exchange. Getting down to basics at the roots.

 

 

We also spoke to many interesting Western China investors, in numerous face-to-face meetings. Not sure whether you know this, but Chengdu’s business is in line with it’s surrounding nature – vibrant and teeming with opportunities (the Chengdu Plain is also known as the “Country of Heaven” and, fittingly, the “Land of Abundance”).

 

We are looking forward to many more great exchanges of experience, know-how and sheer motivation to the belief: What we’re doing, it’s really going to resonate in the world. In Europe, we might only be really secretly optimistic at times, but one thing is surely true for Chendgu (and China) – the sky is the limit.

We believe we speak for all of the attendees, when we say – to be continued…