— An interview with Dr. Wang Yang, founder of Zhiwei Technology: rooted in technical expertise and propelled by business-model innovation, writing a new chapter for private-sector technology innovation.
Introduction: Perseverance and Breakthrough Amid the Tide of the Times
As new quality productive forces rise at an accelerating pace, hard-tech entrepreneurship has become a core driver of economic transformation and upgrading. While many observers describe the entrepreneurial environment as cooling, a group of private entrepreneurs with technical ideals and deep roots in specialized fields is breaking through with conviction. Dr. Wang, founder of Shaoxing Zhiwei Yiyuan Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Shaoxing Zhiwei”), is one such representative. He gave up a stable university teaching post and a seven-figure annual salary at an automotive company, bringing more than a decade of research accumulation in suspension systems into entrepreneurship in the high-end automotive-components field of Full Active Suspension Systems. His actions embody the belief that the present is the best time to start a business.
An Unwavering Original Aspiration: Three Foundations for an Entrepreneurial Journey
More than a decade of technical commitment, from academia to industry
“My research has never departed from intelligent electronically controlled suspension systems.” Dr. Wang’s original entrepreneurial aspiration is rooted in more than a decade of focused professional work. A PhD in Vehicle Engineering from Jilin University and a postdoctoral researcher in Vehicle Engineering at Beijing Institute of Technology, he devoted more than ten years to research in electronically controlled suspension. He led multiple national research projects, including projects of the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation, and was deeply involved in the technical breakthrough of China’s independently developed electronically controlled air-suspension industry for passenger vehicles. From the National Key Laboratory of Automotive Chassis Integration and Bionics at Jilin University to front-line R&D at Geely Automobile Central Research Institute, he consistently focused on core chassis electronic-control technologies and accumulated end-to-end experience from theoretical research through industrial implementation.
This substantial technical accumulation enabled him to identify a market pain point: “Mercedes-Benz and Porsche abroad have already achieved mass production of Full Active Suspension Systems, while China remains in the R&D breakthrough stage. Key technologies are constrained, and core components rely on imports.” His commitment to breaking monopolies and achieving technological independence became the central motivation for leaving stable employment and embarking on entrepreneurship.
Carrying forward a spirit of strength and taking on the mission of the times
Throughout his entrepreneurial journey, the example of his mentor, Mr. Guo, has continued to guide him and strengthened his conviction that entrepreneurship has no age limit. “Thirty-seven degrees Celsius is the temperature at which the human body is most comfortable; thirty-seven years of age is the prime of life, when youthful immaturity gives way to wisdom, and one is filled with vigorous strength and motivation.” As Dr. Wang puts it, “Employment has a retirement age, but entrepreneurship can continue throughout one’s life.” The responsibilities of raising three children did not become a constraint; instead, they became motivation to “create a better technological environment for the next generation.” This sense of inheritance and responsibility has kept him moving forward steadily.
Recognizing the opportunities of the times and seizing policy support
“Many people say the broader environment is unfavorable, but I believe this is a golden age for hard-tech entrepreneurship.” Dr. Wang has his own judgment about entrepreneurial timing. In his view, entrepreneurship in China has entered its third phase: from foreign-trade OEM manufacturing in the early years of reform and opening up, to returnee elites benchmarking the United States and leading localized business-model innovation, and now to a new stage of “homegrown hard-tech entrepreneurship.” National support for new quality productive forces and increasingly complete talent entrepreneurship policies have created fertile ground for technology-innovation enterprises.
Taking the Yangtze River Delta as an example, government-guided funds and talent-project selection programs in Hangzhou, Shaoxing, Zhuji, and other locations have formed a standardized support system. Entrepreneurship project selections held quarterly across Hangzhou’s districts alone provide entrepreneurs with nearly 30 opportunities each year. Just over one month after its establishment, Shaoxing Zhiwei secured nearly RMB 10 million in seed-round financing led by a talent and technology innovation fund of Zhuji State Investment. The financing included no valuation-adjustment terms and did not transfer control; all funds were allocated to R&D. This gave him a strong sense of “the country’s sincerity and support for hard technology.”
Breaking Through: Solving Entrepreneurial Challenges Through Innovative Thinking
An asset-light model that sustains operations through projects
Facing the three major challenges of the automotive-parts industry, namely high technical barriers, long R&D cycles, and substantial fixed-asset investment, Dr. Wang proposed an innovative development path of “asset-light operations plus technical-service enablement.” “China has a strong manufacturing foundation, so there is no need to duplicate heavy-asset investment.” Relying on China’s mature supply-chain resources, he focuses on the company’s strongest capabilities in software systems and electronic-control technologies, using technical services to establish revenue first. The company has already signed revenue contracts worth nearly RMB 4 million. Its first product will be supplied to overseas markets, with small-batch deliveries expected in 2026.
This strategy of sustaining operations through projects both avoids the financial pressure faced by start-ups and enables the company to refine its technology through real projects, laying the foundation for domestic production nominations in 2027 and formal mass production in 2028. As he puts it: “Financing is the icing on the cake. The core is first to determine what can be done without financing, and then use a minimum viable product to validate the business logic.”
Leveraging ecosystem collaboration to open market opportunities
Amid intense competition in the domestic market, Dr. Wang recognizes the key value of ecosystem collaboration. He has observed that domestic OEMs are shifting from “placing blind faith in foreign suppliers” to “supporting indigenous innovation.” They are not only willing to provide technical-validation opportunities for start-ups, but also proactively share Tier 2 supplier resources and assist with supply-chain and product-quality management. This is the collaborative, win-win power of China’s automotive-industry ecosystem. He is confident that, with its core technical strengths and OEM ecosystem support, Zhiwei Technology can quickly open the domestic market.
At the same time, he gives equal weight to business-model innovation and technological innovation. He plans to use artificial intelligence to upgrade chassis electronic-control software and to combine technical-solution delivery with supply-chain integration. This can reduce the company’s own investment while enabling traditional manufacturing enterprises and creating differentiated competitive advantages. The approach of “not making cars, but helping automakers make better cars” echoes Huawei’s ecosystem strategy and reflects the business insight of local entrepreneurs.
An Echo of the Times: The Responsibility and Future of Private-Sector Technology Innovation
Correcting misconceptions and conveying positive entrepreneurial energy
“Entrepreneurship itself is not difficult now; speculative entrepreneurship is difficult. Innovation itself is not difficult; innovation without hard-core technology is difficult.” Dr. Wang’s view directly addresses common misconceptions in today’s entrepreneurial community. In his view, increasingly mature capital markets such as China’s STAR Market and ChiNext provide hard-tech enterprises with a clear growth path. Chinese consumers are among the world’s most receptive to new technologies, from foldable smartphones to intelligent vehicles, and the market is consistently willing to pay for innovation. China’s vast pool of engineering talent and powerful manufacturing system give technology-innovation enterprises confidence.
His entrepreneurial practice is not only a pursuit of personal ideals; it also seeks to convey a belief: “In an era when the country supports hard technology, highly qualified talent trained locally need not blindly look to overseas experience. By building on their own professional expertise, they can also create world-class products.” This positive energy is precisely the spiritual nourishment that today’s private economy needs.
Focusing on domestic substitution and supporting industrial upgrading
As a core component of the intelligent automotive chassis, the localization of Full Active Suspension Systems is highly significant to China’s automotive industry. Only four to five vehicle manufacturers globally currently have mass-produced models equipped with these systems, and China does not yet have mature mass-produced products. Zhiwei Technology’s R&D work is addressing this market gap. “China’s automotive industry already leads the world in intelligent driving and cockpit technologies. Domestic substitution in the chassis field is an inevitable trend,” Dr. Wang says. The company’s objective is not only to develop products, but also to participate in setting industry standards so that China can gain an international voice in this specialized field.
He also looks forward to opportunities for media coverage: “This is not advertising for an enterprise. It is about speaking up for hard-tech entrepreneurship, helping more people see the country’s support for innovation, and encouraging more technical talent to step outside their comfort zones.” This perspective of looking beyond the company to the industry gives the start-up a deeper sense of industrial responsibility.
Conclusion: Pursuing a mission with original aspiration and winning the future through innovation
Dr. Wang’s transition from university scholar to entrepreneurial pioneer, and from technical specialist to business leader, reflects the path of a new generation of private-sector technology innovators. Zhiwei Technology’s four-year plan sets clear and determined goals: small-batch delivery in 2026, scaled implementation in 2027, and formal mass production in 2028. Supporting this blueprint are more than a decade of accumulated technical capability, an accurate judgment of industry trends, and firm confidence in China’s innovation environment.
As new quality productive forces develop at an accelerating pace, private technology-innovation enterprises such as Zhiwei Technology are tackling one constrained core technology after another with the courage to lead and the resolve to work deeply in their fields. Their story is not only an entrepreneurial account, but also a vivid reflection of China’s economic transformation and upgrading. As more technical professionals enter hard-tech entrepreneurship and more specialized sectors achieve domestic substitution, China’s high-quality economic development will gain stronger support. This is the mission and honor entrusted by the times to every technology innovator.
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