How parents can help Hong Kong create the next Google
Yat Siu says we can groom many more tech entrepreneurs for the global digital age - if only Hong Kong parents would stop worrying about outcome and encourage their children to take risks
Hong Kong’s telecommunications, transport and talent are among the very best in the world. Low taxes, efficiency and world-class infrastructure make the territory highly attractive to business start-ups. In a Forbes article this year, Hong Kong was named first in “The World’s Top 4 Tech Capitals To Watch (After Silicon Valley and New York)”. With a cosmopolitan population and a growing base of angel investors, our city has the potential to develop into a major regional start-up centre.
I have worked in Hong Kong’s technology sector for two decades, and it seems to me there is some room for improvement.
Despite the positive atmosphere and increased activity among the start-up community in recent times, tech entrepreneurs are much more abundant in other Asian countries than in Hong Kong. So what can we do to encourage a more vibrant start-up culture?
When I started Outblaze more than 15 years ago, the local technology scene was dire. I was often obliged to educate business acquaintances – including potential partners – by outlining the true potential of the internet. At the time, it was incredibly difficult to explain why our new business was a worthwhile venture. Prospective employees were sceptical of working for a cash-strapped start-up.
Thankfully, today those attitudes have changed radically: technology has become pervasive in everyday life and new tech opportunities are much more readily grasped by the business community. We all use Google, Wikipedia and Facebook on our digital devices, yet we tend to forget that the oldest of these brands – Google – is just a teenager. The success of young technology entrepreneurs is celebrated everywhere. Technology start-up fever is sweeping the world.
These are undoubtedly positive developments, but the global surge of technology entrepreneurship means that Hong Kong is merely moving in lockstep with other markets; we are not producing any more start-ups than our neighbours and, in fact, the overall number employed in the local technology scene remains relatively low. Hong Kong needs to supercharge the entrepreneurship trend.