Young entrepreneurs from APEC economies gathered in Guangzhou from September 19 to 20 for a two-day tour of the city's innovation hubs, pharmaceutical and health enterprises, science and technology platforms, cross-border e-commerce carriers and the Liede International Neighborhood. The visit offered participants an opportunity to explore new avenues for cooperation across the Asia-Pacific region.
The visit aimed to connect youth power and foster shared prosperity among the 21 member economies. For many participants, the trip provided firsthand insight into how China's Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) is developing integrated ecosystems that link research, advanced manufacturing and startup support.
Mohd Nazar Bin Yamat, an entrepreneur from Penang, Malaysia, who works in the advisory industry for universities and colleges, was particularly impressed by the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in water treatment and many other industries by Mogulinker, a Guangzhou-based IoT (Internet of Things) company.
"Here I can see the real-life scenario, the process of water treatment with the help of AI," said Nazar. He noted that the experience inspired him to bring more members of his organization to future APEC tours.
Claudio Henriquez, an entrepreneur from Chile, was equally impressed by the Internet of Things (IoT) model he encountered. "The model is very impressive because there are many technologies in just one model. And the result is that the savings that you can generate are very high," he said.
Henriquez noted that Chile depends heavily on oil and fossil fuels, and its mining industry consumes vast amounts of energy, adding that he hopes to bring the technology back home. "Probably it's very easy to sell the technology there, because you already have the whole ecosystem to make the savings."
Beyond specific technologies, Henriquez was struck by China's broader startup environment.
"Now we have startup programs in Chile, but there the capital is very small in scale," he said. "But here you have a whole ecosystem with the whole infrastructure that is looking for young people starting new companies. That's why you have Alibaba, you have DeepSeek. It's like Silicon Valley 30 years ago, but now it's here in China. I'm totally impressed by that."
Carlos Obando, a representative from the APEC Secretariat, said all the companies the group visited during the tour left a strong impression on the participants.
Obando was also moved by the enthusiasm of the participants. "I was very surprised about how enthusiastic the participants were here in this activity," he said. "It was very interesting to see the interaction about how they were sharing their experiences." He noted that sharing knowledge and experiences and learning from one another are among the defining characteristics of APEC.
Obando emphasized that the ultimate goal of APEC is to reach shared prosperity among the people across all 21 economies. "I think that this activity is in that line," he said. "Besides sharing information, the idea is to keep the links in order to cooperate among us."
As the delegation wrapped up its visit, participants expressed optimism that the connections made here would translate into concrete partnerships, helping to build a more integrated and prosperous Asia-Pacific region.
Reporter | Guo Chuhua
Photo | Guo Chuhua
Poster | Guo Chuhua
Cameraman | Guo Chuhua
Video | Guo Chuhua
