These young people travelled thousands of miles away from home to launch businesses in China. What drew them here?

　　Thanks to China"s expanding opening‑up drive and maturing innovation ecosystem, the country offers invaluable certainty and fresh opportunities for entrepreneurs across the globe. In interviews, seven young innovators from different nations shared their real‑life journeys of building ventures in Beijing.

　　Drawn by curiosity

　　Gavin Cooley came to China out of pure curiosity and now the 24‑year‑old American boasts more than three million followers on China"s social‑media platforms.

　　Cooley first set foot in China at a summer language camp in 2016, and his curiosity about the country took hold. Every summer throughout high school, he travelled across the Pacific to study Chinese. When graduation arrived, he chose Peking University over top US universities for further education.

　　While studying in Beijing, a business idea began to form. "Things local Chinese take for granted often amaze foreigners," Cooley reflected. Lightning‑fast food delivery, ubiquitous mobile payments, high‑speed trains racing above 300 kilometers per hour - he realized these everyday stories would resonate with global audiences when told through foreign eyes.

　　That led him to start sharing real Chinese daily life from a foreign perspective. The unique positioning won him millions of followers. After graduation, he founded a cultural company, acting as a two-way bridge: helping Chinese brands expand overseas and guiding foreign brands to adapt to the Chinese market.

　　If curiosity brought Cooley to China, a timely phone call changed the course of Biman Najika Liyanage"s life. Looking back, the Sri Lankan entrepreneur calls it his stroke of good fortune.