Santa Clara, Calif. – “The emerging markets are leading the future,” Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers told the audience at the annual Asian American Multi-Technology Association conference on December 12.
Chambers delivered the conference keynote speech, focusing on the collaboration model implemented by his company’s management, and on ways to integrate several countries in an open platform.
Cisco’s recent announcement of its $16 billion investment in China has sent a new wave into the sea of Chinese financing by world multinationals. Its cooperation with the China Development Bank and Chinese Ministry of Education is helping Cisco ride the crest of this wave.
“China is becoming the center of innovation and creativity,” Chambers said, emphasizing Cisco’s establishment of another 300 Cisco Network Academies in that country, in addition to the 200 that have trained 90,000 students. Chambers also discussed Cisco’s increasing involvement in health care and environmental projects as part of the Clinton Global Initiative.
Cisco’s latest funding for the Alibaba Group, along with its hefty investment in China overall, have positioned the company at the center of the Middle Kingdom’s technological platform. Last month, Alibaba received a $17 million investment from Cisco before its IPO at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the company’s shares tripled on the first day of trading, boosting its reputation as the largest e-commerce company in China.
Founded in 1979, the Asian American MultiTechnology Association is a business network based in Silicon Valley that promotes the success of technology enterprises in the Pacific Rim. The association has a worldwide network of 10,000 members from more than 2,000 companies, including members in the Internet, wireless, telecommunications, computers, semiconductor, software, hardware, electronics and bio-tech industries. The AAMA has a Beijing office and a new Shanghai chapter started by William Chen, an American-born, Chinese venture capitalist with DT Capital.
“This is the largest conference in the AAMA history with such positive energy and high quality and quantity of attendees,” said Kyung Yoon, the group’s president and vice chairman of Heidrick & Struggles. Yoon added that China’s emergence as an economy influencing the markets of the Asia Pacific region and around the world motivated the group to focus its conference on China this year.
“It is incredible to meet the members of my network from all over the world here,” said Christine Hsu, founder of ORIENTED.com, a happy-hour social network for cross-cultural professionals that also served as a media sponsor for the conference. Hsu started ORIENTED.com in Shanghai, Beijing and Taipei five years ago with funds from angel investors in the Greater China region, and it now boasts 300,000 members worldwide.
For other tech entrepreneurs, it was the direct contact with VCs that attracted them to the AAMA Connect conference. “The Venture Capitalists Day is truly educational,” said Dr. Liming Yang, a VP with Algaen, a biotech company founded by a group of mainland Chinese academics in California. Dr. Liming submitted a business plan that won interest among the VCs at the conference.
An IPO discussion led by Anna Mok, a partner at Deloitte, also inspired the attending entrepreneurs with their future possibilities.
The AAMA conference has helped connect rising entrepreneurs with VC communities from China, India, Vietnam and the United States. Gerd Goette, managing partner of Siemens Venture Capital, estimated that their Beijing office staff will double over the next couple years with their intention to increase their investment in China. “It is a new wave of gold rush,” said Goette about the VC funding pouring into China.
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