At the 2026 Yabuli Forum Summer Annual Meeting, held from September 4-6 in Chengdu, Sichuan, Li Xiaojia, the forum's rotating chairman and founder and chairman of Micro Connect, delivered a keynote address. He highlighted that current entrepreneurs are entering an era of succession, with second and even third-generation leadership transitions emerging as a core challenge.
Li noted that in the process of globalization, companies face immense talent hurdles when expanding overseas. He pointed out that when businesses go global, whether by bringing Chinese personnel abroad or instilling a Chinese-style work ethic in local hires, these are critical issues that must be resolved. On the technology front, he argued that companies must not only train existing staff to use AI but also actively recruit 'AI-native' talent.
He further emphasized that in the 'aviation era' of AI, entrepreneurs must personally pilot the plane, rather than merely using AI as passengers. They must take direct command, because no one else can fly the AI aircraft to its destination on their behalf. Regarding time management, Li observed that entrepreneurs previously devoted most of their efforts to thriving in familiar domestic markets. He stated that future leaders will need to allocate significantly more time to 'going global' and AI, not only deciding how to expand internationally but also using AI to completely restructure their time.
Turning to investment logic in the AI age, Li believes that financial models must shift from large-scale finance supporting giants to 'fragmented' or distributed finance that benefits the masses. Through high-frequency, capillary-style capital flows, more people can share in the dividends of the AI era. He noted that Chinese companies' overseas expansion differs from that of Japanese and American firms in the past, as relying on massive capital exports is no longer viable. The future path involves leveraging AI logic to seek capital abroad, using a 'small steps, fast runs' approach with high-frequency, small-scale investments to enter 'Global South' markets such as Africa and Latin America, thereby completing a new round of industrialization, internationalization, and AI integration.
Li concluded by saying that if this generation of entrepreneurs seized the opportunities of reform and opening-up three decades ago, and today stands at the forefront of AI's takeoff while grasping that chance, they will be 'the entrepreneurs most favored by God.'