Ten years ago Hong Kong was buzzing with optimism about the Internet. PCCW made headlines for purchasing the domain name cyberworks.com for $1,000,000 U.S. dollars, and dot com hysteria quickly spread to other local businesses.
The hunger to appear up-to-date and part of the next big thing gave birth to some truly ridiculous names for Hong Kong companies. Pretty soon every advertisement featured a name with the prefix ‘e-something’, ‘i-something’ or with the word ‘cyber’ awkwardly appended. The only trouble was that most people had no clue what the Internet was useful for, or how to make a business from it.
As dot com fever reached its peak, even Central’s nightlife was affected. Often you heard people asking “Are you going to the launch party tonight?” There was even a building on Wellington Street legally rechristened ‘Dot Com House’ during those days.
It was in this frenzied environment that I first I met Casey Lau, the gregarious organizer of the upcoming StartupsHK event on August 7th. Even back then, Casey stood out as one of the few people who fathomed the power and usefulness of the Internet.
Fast-forward to 2010 and Casey is a veteran of Hong Kong’s Internet scene, a successful entrepreneur, a savvy content guy, and the only person I know who had a full-costume Star Trek wedding (yes, that pushes him into über-geek territory.)
Casey’s StartupsHK event on Saturday, August 7th, promises “no suits and no PowerPoint.” The one-day event, which features guest speakers (including Pat Lee from rottentomatoes and alivenotdead,) is a great way for aspiring startups to meet and share information. The other benefits include hearing tales from experienced entrepreneurs, learning about existing resources in Hong Kong, discussing funding channels, and the ability to generate buzz by demoing their projects.
Best of all it’s FREE, and just requires registration in order to attend.
For more information, please visit the StartupsHK website.
Recommended!
StartupsHK
Saturday, August 7th, 2010
10am to 7pm
Cyberport
Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
FREE!
