Before the plastic chairs at the Phnom Penh tea stall even had time to warm up, a tuk-tuk puttered past, kicking up a cloud of exhaust. At the next table, a group of Fujianese guys involved in gaming and cross-border e-commerce were glued to their phones, discussing the latest billionaire rankings. Everyone was chiming in about how ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming’s net worth had surged past $105 billion, rocketing him straight to the top spot as Asia’s richest man. From his billions back in the day to a sevenfold leap today, it’s all thanks to the AI wave leaving traditional tycoons far behind.
Whenever Fujian natives in the tech scene come up, folks always seem to swap legendary tales. Take Zhang Yiming, another Fujian boy who built his empire up in Beijing and climbed to the summit of wealth. Then there is Vincent, another big name from the online world with Fujian roots, who recently made a chaotic trip back from Cambodia only to end up behind bars at the Dongcheng Detention Center in Beijing. Sipping their iced coffees, the regulars shook their heads—same trade, tapping away at keyboards for a living, but what a world of difference in how things turn out.
Business owners around here love using these big bosses as fodder for conversation. After knocking off the night shift, even a simple plate of stir-fried noodles at a roadside stall usually comes with a side of musing. Whether it is the glory of big tech or the hustle of grinding at the bottom, it is mostly just talk for entertainment. Out here in the local Chinese community, people still have to put in an honest day's graft. You watch the news about the crown changing hands, but tomorrow you just wake up and keep on grinding.
