2019 Startup Trends from China’s Top Entrepreneurship Circles

Zhejiang University’s entrepreneurship community is highly regarded. The 2015 ZJU Entrepreneurship Competition produced founders such as Pinduoduo’s Xu Zheng, Kuang-Chi’s Liu Ruopeng, Mogujie’s Chen Qi, GeTui’s Fang Yi, and Kuaidi Dache’s Chen Weixing. On December 29, the last working day of 2018, the Zhejiang University Alumni Association held the grand final of the 2018 Alumni Entrepreneurship Competition, where 16 startup teams pitched on stage. Although 2018 was a down year for venture investment, this top-tier showcase still offers a lens into likely trends for 2019.

Coverage across hot sectors: This year’s competition featured many projects in AI, chips, biopharma, and robotics—areas facing supply-chain chokepoints amid the trade-war backdrop. For the ZJU community, these weren’t opportunistic pivots; most teams started 2–3 years ago and only came into the spotlight as the sectors heated up this year.

Pure business-model plays are out of favor: Of the 16 finalists, only four were primarily business-model plays—“衣邦人”, “受精”, “牙医”, and “六娃”. Among them, “受精” and “牙医” are grounded in core technology and rely on business-model innovation for rapid replication and market capture.

Entrepreneur profiles by cohort: Different generations play differently. Those born in the 1960s are resource-rich and favor building circles and ecosystems (e.g., “师董会”, “冯站长之家”). The 1970s cohort combines technology with capital and seeks heavy investment to build strong technical barriers (e.g., “外骨骼机器人”, “六自由度海浪稳定平台”, “氢燃料电池发动机”). The 1980s cohort excels at leveraging capital to secure cash flow quickly and then iteratively upgrading technology (e.g., “衣邦人”, “机器视觉工业检测”, “邻汇吧”). The 1990s cohort starts from new-generation individual needs, building small, elegant, and highly explosive projects (e.g., “stepsbeats”).

Published at: Dec 30, 2018 · Modified at: Oct 26, 2025