APEC young entrepreneurs’ conference opens in Hangzhou

Summary

The APEC Young Entrepreneurs' Conference opened in Hangzhou on 16 September under the theme 'Entrepreneurship-Driven, Youth-Led Innovation: Together Shaping an Inclusive and Prosperous Asia-Pacific', drawing about 200 young entrepreneurs, investors and representatives from APEC economies. The conference aims to promote friendly exchange and practical cooperation among young people in the region and to contribute youth momentum to building an Asia-Pacific community. It is hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Zhejiang Provincial People's Government, and organised by the Hangzhou Municipal People's Government and the Zhejiang People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.

Lu Xiangdong, vice-president of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries; Xu Wenguang, Standing Committee member of the CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee and executive vice-governor of Zhejiang; Zhang Yan, vice-mayor of Hangzhou; and Ovando, director of projects at the APEC Steering Committee on Economic and Technical Cooperation, attended the opening ceremony and spoke. Lu said the conference is closely aligned with APEC's 'China Year' theme and is aimed at serving youth innovation and entrepreneurship in the Asia-Pacific, making it a signature youth-focused event hosted by China as APEC host. He said he expected youth delegates to be pioneering innovators, socially minded entrepreneurs and bridge-builders of people-to-people friendship.

Xu said Zhejiang offers fertile ground for entrepreneurship, partners that succeed together and a stage connected to the world. The province is ready to work with all sides to build a first-class business environment, share the benefits of talent mobility and jointly cultivate regional growth drivers. Ovando conveyed congratulations from APEC Secretariat executive director Pedroza on the success of the conference and said young people are an important force for future innovation and regional economic growth.

Zhang said Hangzhou has set a new goal of building a city of higher-level innovation and vitality, and is creating a 'tropical rainforest' suited to youth entrepreneurship. Miranda, a young entrepreneur from Peru, said artificial intelligence is driving a new round of social transformation and that APEC economies should strengthen cross-border connectivity. After the opening ceremony, delegates held discussions on artificial intelligence technology and applications, light entrepreneurship, and cross-border e-commerce and digital trade.

The conference also features entrepreneurship workshops, investment matchmaking sessions and city entrepreneurship ecosystem tours. Delegates will travel to Guangzhou afterwards for visits focused on innovation and entrepreneurship.

Commentary

APEC is a regional cooperation mechanism spanning 21 economies that together account for roughly 60 percent of global GDP, and its youth entrepreneurship agenda is more than a youth event. It is a window through which member economies test the rules of digital trade and the shape of innovation ecosystems. New Zealand hosted APEC in 2021 and has a direct stake in regional economic integration.

The Hangzhou conference puts artificial intelligence, light entrepreneurship, cross-border e-commerce and digital trade on the same agenda, and these map onto three variables that matter most to New Zealand small and medium-sized enterprises expanding into Asian markets: technology tools, asset-light models and digital channels. On the opportunity side, Hangzhou has built a mature cross-border e-commerce service ecosystem on the back of platforms such as Alibaba. The investment matchmaking sessions and city entrepreneurship ecosystem tours arranged for the conference offer New Zealand SMEs a low-cost route to Chinese and wider Asia-Pacific buyers.

Niche food and beverage and agritech products from New Zealand could reach regional markets through cross-border e-commerce channels, sidestepping the high thresholds that come with traditional commodity trade. On the competitive side, young entrepreneurs across the Asia-Pacific widely see AI as a tool for cutting start-up costs, while digital adoption among New Zealand SMEs has been relatively slow. They risk falling behind Chinese and Southeast Asian peers, particularly in applications such as AI customer service and smart product selection.

Coordination of digital trade rules under the APEC framework is also making slow progress, and differences in data localisation and consumer protection requirements across economies can raise cross-border compliance costs. Rather than waiting for regional standards to converge, New Zealand SMEs would do better to use concrete events such as APEC's thematic workshops and the follow-on visit to Guangzhou to test whether their products match the preferences of young Asia-Pacific consumers. They should also watch for policy spillovers from China's cross-border e-commerce export measures, including whether customs facilitation lessons from the Hangzhou comprehensive pilot zone are picked up by other APEC members.

Combining strengths in sustainable agriculture or clean technology with the region's youth entrepreneurship hotspots would open the door to early recognition in niche segments.

Keywords: APEC Young Entrepreneurs' Conference, Hangzhou, youth innovation and entrepreneurship, Asia-Pacific community, Lu Xiangdong, Xu Wenguang, Ovando, artificial intelligence technology and applications, cross-border e-commerce and digital trade, Guangzhou

Summary in Chinese | 摘要

9月16日，亚太经合组织（APEC）青年创业者大会在杭州开幕。大会以“创业驱动，青年创变：共塑普惠繁荣亚太”为主题，旨在促进亚太地区青年友好交流与务实合作，为建设亚太共同体贡献青春力量。大会由中国人民对外友好协会、浙江省人民政府主办，杭州市人民政府、浙江省人民对外友好协会承办。

中国人民对外友好协会副会长卢向东，浙江省委常委、常务副省长徐文光，杭州市副市长章燕，APEC经济技术合作高官指导委员会项目主任奥万多等出席开幕式并致辞。来自APEC经济体的青年创业者、投资人及各方代表约200人出席。卢向东表示，大会紧扣APEC“中国年”主题，着眼服务亚太地区青年创新创业，是中方作为东道主推动举办的青年领域特色活动；期待青年代表做敢为人先的“创新者”、心系社会的“创业者”和民间友好的“架桥者”。

徐文光说，浙江有滋养创业的好土壤、相互成就的好伙伴、联通世界的大舞台，愿与各方共建一流营商环境，共享人才流动便利，共育区域增长动能。奥万多转达APEC秘书处执行主任佩德罗萨对大会成功举办的祝贺，并称青年是推动未来创新和区域经济增长的重要力量。章燕表示，杭州正以“建设更高水平创新活力之城”为新目标，构建适宜青年创业的“热带雨林”。

秘鲁青年创业者代表米兰达说，人工智能正推动社会新一轮变革转型，亚太各经济体应加强跨境连接。开幕式后，与会代表围绕人工智能技术及应用、轻创业、跨境电商与数字贸易等议题研讨；大会期间还将举办创业工作坊、投资对接会、城市创业生态考察，会后代表将赴广州进行创新创业主题参访。

Commentary in Chinese | 评论

APEC作为覆盖21个经济体、贡献全球约六成GDP的区域合作机制，其青年创业议程并非单纯的青年活动，而是各成员经济体试探数字贸易规则与创新生态的窗口。新西兰曾在2021年主办APEC，对区域经济一体化有切身诉求。此次杭州大会将人工智能、轻创业、跨境电商与数字贸易并列讨论，恰好对应新西兰中小企业拓展亚洲市场时的三个关键变量：技术工具、轻资产模式和数字渠道。

从机会视角看，杭州依托阿里巴巴等平台已形成成熟的跨境电商服务生态，大会安排的投资对接会和城市创业生态考察，为新西兰中小企业提供了低成本接触中国及亚太买家的路径。新西兰在食品饮料、农业科技领域的细分产品若能借跨境电商进入区域市场，可绕开传统大宗贸易的高门槛。但从竞争视角看，亚太青年创业者普遍将AI视为降低创业成本的利器，而新西兰中小企业的数字化采纳速度相对滞后，尤其在AI客服、智能选品等应用上可能落后于中国和东南亚同行。

此外，APEC框架下的数字贸易规则协调进展缓慢，各经济体数据本地化和消费者保护要求差异较大，可能增加跨境合规成本。新西兰中小企业与其等待区域标准统一，不如主动利用APEC的专题工作坊和后续广州参访这类具体活动，测试产品是否符合亚太青年消费群体的偏好，同时关注中国在跨境电商出口方面的政策外溢效应，例如杭州综试区的通关便利化经验是否会被其他APEC成员借鉴。若能将自身在可持续农业或清洁技术上的优势与区域青年创业热点结合，有机会在细分赛道建立先发认知。

关键词: APEC青年创业者大会, 杭州, 青年创新创业, 亚太共同体, 卢向东, 徐文光, 奥万多, 人工智能技术及应用, 跨境电商与数字贸易, 广州

Source: Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries – CPAFFC News