FOUNDER PARTNER
ZIDING 'ZI' ZHANG
Compulsive entrepreneur
My earliest memories are from boarding kindergarten (yes that's a thing in Beijing).
At the age of three, we were taught maths, literacy, music, sports, respect, and rules. Not a light schedule for an infant, but it gifted me a natural love for learning.
Immigrating to the UK at six years of age was an adventure. Before even making sense of the world I was in, an exciting new one came along.
I don't remember learning English. It just happened.
Children grow up believing they can do anything because life hasn't had enough time to tell them what they supposedly can't do. As an outsider in an alien world, I couldn't see the same barriers as my Mum did at the time.
She said, "work harder when others play; that's the only way you will 'overtake' them in this world."
Schooling with privileged peers by day while sleeping in a small flat with my hard working Mum made me desperate for change. I felt there was no choice but to work hard.
Experiencing the hybrid upbringing of a traditional Chinese Tiger mother and a competitive boarding school, I developed a keen eye for human behaviour. To see a problem from different and often opposing perspectives yields incredible insights.
Getting into Harvard changed my life; getting kicked out of Harvard changed it more. Getting in convinced me that success was guaranteed; getting kicked out revealed how wrong I was.
My first job was slaving zero-hour-minimum-wage contract at a hotel bar. The camaraderie between the staff sustained everybody through the grueling shifts. It was a tough grind but importantly, I became financially independent.
One of my most significant achievements was treating my Mum to dinner after my first pay-check. For 19 years, she had only given and I had only taken. That day marked a crucial turning point; it is now my turn to give.
My first company was destined to fail. Wanting to experience the actualisation of an idea, I explored, researched, built, and tested until my savings ran dry.
In need of work again, I decided to explore the potential of just me, a computer, and an internet connection. Small and medium enterprises can all find great value in integrating technology in their operations. I walked into a kebab shop and asked if they wanted to use a delivery app: my first client.
I'm interested in everything - the more complex the problem, the better. My greatest fascinations are human nature, artificial general intelligence, and space colonisation.