3rd "Born to Be Global" Overseas Global Expansion Summit, SG, 1.4k founders on "Born Global · Going Global for Growth"

The 3rd "Born to Be Global" Overseas Global Expansion Summit was held at Resorts World Sentosa, Singapore, from June 28–29, 2026, under the theme "Born Global · Going Global for Growth," gathering over 1,400 entrepreneurs, economists, and overseas expansion experts from China and abroad, with livestream views exceeding 1.2 million.

Co-hosted by Channel Wu (890xsx) and the Sino‑Commercial Overseas Industrial Alliance, with support from ITG Holding, YF Life, Cainiao, Linuo Pharmaceutical Packaging, Linuo Glass, Feishu, Ries China, Resorts World Sentosa, and Lianlian DigiTech.

The two‑day main forum was structured around four sections: “The Global Economy in Reconstruction,” “Seeking Growth from Global Markets,” “Creating New Global Growth,” and “Growing Together with the World.” It featured over 20 keynote speeches, roundtables, and the “Global Night” gala dinner. Two parallel forums addressed “Category Innovation Driving Overseas Expansion Growth: From Manufacturing to Brand” and “New Global Wealth Growth: From Risk Response to Long‑Termism.”

Mr. Andrew Phua, Chief Representative & Executive Director, Greater China, Singapore Tourism Board (STB), delivered the host‑country welcome address. He welcomed guests and outlined Singapore’s geographic advantages and service support as a hub for Chinese companies expanding overseas.

Wu Xiaobo, Financial Author and Founder of Channel Wu, delivered the opening address and gave a keynote speech titled “Trends and Challenges in the Overseas Expansion of Chinese Enterprises.” He identified six major trends in the current wave of Chinese companies going global: from “product export” to “capability export”; from “low‑price competition” to “global branding”; from “going outward from the domestic market” to being “born global”; from “following rules” to “setting standards”; from “technology catch‑up” to “AI leadership”; and from “going it alone” to “cluster‑based expansion.” He also highlighted six major risks facing Chinese companies overseas: geopolitical tensions and cultural conflict, compliance risks in localized operations, supply chain localization risks, brand‑building risks, ESG‑related operational risks, and excessive internal competition among Chinese companies expanding abroad.

At the summit, scholars and entrepreneurs from different countries also shared perspectives on overseas growth from a range of angles.

DAVID BLAIR, Chief Economist at the Alliance of Global Talent Organizations (AGTO), analyzed the direction of globalization through the lens of changing China‑US dynamics. XU SITAO, Independent Economist, discussed overseas expansion strategies for Chinese companies during a period of global adjustment. Prof Tan Kong Yam, Former Chief Economist of the Singapore Government and Emeritus Professor of Economics, NTU, examined development opportunities for Chinese companies in Southeast Asia from the perspective of a multipolar global economy. QIN SHUO, Financial Specialist, Founder of Chin@Moments, discussed the global integration of Chinese business civilization. FANG YUE, EVE Energy Chair in Economics and Decision Sciences, CEIBS, explained how AI super‑intelligent systems can empower overseas growth. ZHUO LI, Chairman, Sino‑Commercial Overseas Industrial Alliance, Director of Industrial Cluster Globalization Centre, provided entrepreneurs with an analysis of growth pathways and approaches for Chinese companies going global.

Entrepreneurs with front‑line international business experience also shared practical insights from the field.

SONG LAI, Chairman of Linuo Pharmaceutical Packaging and Chairman of Linuo Glass, presented the globalization journey of a manufacturing enterprise from product export to solution export. In his speech, he noted that Linuo’s international expansion has progressed from product output to technology output, and then to standards leadership and ecosystem co‑development. A globally connected production capacity network has made growth more sustainable, while its RTU solution has become the world’s leading brand in its category, strengthening the industrial foundation of its global strategy.

WILLIAM XIONG, Senior Vice‑President, Cainiao Group, delivered a speech titled “From E‑commerce Expansion to Technology Expansion: New Trends in Industrial Growth.” He shared how Cainiao leverages its global network and technological innovation to provide customized end‑to‑end logistics solutions for Chinese e‑commerce and technology companies expanding overseas.

RONG KUNMING, Executive Vice President, Xiamen ITG Group Corp., Ltd., outlined the global growth path of Chinese supply chains and identified three stages of transformation for supply chain companies going global: from trader to industrial partner, and then to organizer of industrial chains. He said commodity trading offers only opportunities; truly entering a local market means solving problems on the ground with localized capabilities, while building collaborative ecosystems to create value is the future direction of overseas expansion. In his view, future overseas expansion will be cluster‑based.

As a company that has participated in the summit for three consecutive years, Feishu was represented this year by SHI ZHIJUN, Chief Strategy Officer of Feishu, who delivered a presentation titled “When AI Becomes an Employee: Organizational Evolution in Global Enterprises.” He shared the logic behind building global organizations for companies expanding overseas, the unique value of AI Agent for such companies, practical implementation cases and recommendations, and Feishu’s core capabilities in supporting AI adoption.

STEPHEN ZHANG, Executive Director & Chief Executive Officer, YF Life, opened his speech with the hit film How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies and delivered a presentation titled “Global Capital Trends: From Risk Preference to ‘Certainty’ Growth.” His remarks focused on the logic of global wealth growth, cross‑border asset allocation frameworks, and related solutions, offering attending entrepreneurs a practical roadmap for global asset allocation.

In addition to the speakers above, JACK YE, Founder, Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer, MINISO Group; RICHARD WANG, Chairman, Holley Group; and YANG TAO, Founder & CEO, Kilimall, Chairman, Changsha Feituo Information Technology, among other business leaders, shared practical experience from the front lines, offering valuable insights to attendees.

Two parallel forums were held alongside the summit.

Parallel Forum I focused on “Category Innovation Driving Overseas Expansion Growth: From Manufacturing to Brand” and was co‑hosted by Ries China. It explored how Chinese manufacturers can leverage category innovation to build brands overseas and achieve growth. ALAN HE, Partner, Ries China, delivered an in‑depth presentation titled “New Category Insights and Strategy: The Underlying Logic and Growth Opportunities of Category Innovation.” WU SHICHUN, Founding Partner of Plum Ventures, President of Xinli Club; WATSON XU, Founder & CEO, WOOK Group; and ANTONY GAO, Founder of Argooz Technology, Former President of Global Sales and Service, Huawei Consumer Business Group, also shared their perspectives on capital empowerment, digital retail, and brand breakthroughs.

Parallel Forum II was jointly hosted by the Sino‑Commercial Overseas Industrial Alliance and YF Life under the theme “New Global Wealth Growth: From Risk Response to Long‑Termism.” XU SITAO, Independent Economist; DENNIS LUK, Chief Investment Officer, YF Life; and HONG LIU, Tan Lark Sye Chair Professor, School of Social Sciences, NTU Singapore, shared perspectives on asset‑class opportunities, cross‑cycle wealth allocation, and family business succession among overseas Chinese entrepreneurs. They also joined a roundtable discussion on “Preserving and Passing on Wealth Amid Global Change.”

During the summit, the Industrial Cluster Globalization Centre was launched with its first 50 ecosystem partners; Wu Xiaobo and ZHUO LI presented certificates. The centre aims to unite leading Chinese service institutions in the overseas expansion ecosystem and build a gateway for cluster‑based globalization, helping Chinese manufacturing reach global markets through the strength of industrial clusters.

The summit’s theme evolution—from “Resilience” in 2024 to “Integration” in 2025 to this year’s “Born Global · Going Global for Growth”—mirrors the shifting mindset of Chinese firms: from hesitation, to integration, to growth. Over three years, the series has become a key annual platform for exchange among Chinese companies expanding overseas.

The Sino‑Commercial Overseas Industrial Alliance, initiated by Channel Wu and service partners, offers a one‑stop community with thousands of members, providing efficient resource matching and services for entrepreneurs, founders, and overseas business leaders planning or already engaged in global expansion.