Belly Li / Executive President, Guangdong Aofei Data Technology Co., Ltd.:

I believe women should never be defined by labels. Many people say, “You’re so gentle, can you really work in the IT industry?” That’s only one side of me, those who have worked with me have seen otherwise.

I am Belly Li from Aofei Data Technology. I am currently the Executive President of the company and have been based in Nansha for more than ten years.

This is our computing centre at the advanced manufacturing base in Dagang, Nansha. Essentially, it’s a “warehouse” for storing data. Only by building solid infrastructure can we support future artificial intelligence computing.

The companies we serve include some of China’s leading internet enterprises such as Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent and ByteDance. I don’t only take part in developing in Nansha, I’m also deeply passionate about its development. 

After the company was listed, I made two major investments in Nansha. One was purchasing land in Dagang Town to develop a Greater Bay Area Artificial intelligence data centre. The other was this park in the Qingsheng area.

During that time, I went to the construction sites every day to oversee the building project. I wore out several pairs of shoes, and one of our cars was even written off.

Nansha offers many new approaches. For example, once land is acquired, construction must begin immediately.

Three years ago, this place was still farmland and shrimp ponds. But in the blink of an eye, a few years passed, and four data centre buildings have risen here.

This is actually just the tip of the iceberg. A small unit, such as this one, costs several million yuan. You can imagine, with such a dense cluster of high-performance computing equipment here, the overall value is truly immense.

Yi Xidong / Deputy Director of R&D, Guangdong Aofei Data Technology Co., Ltd.:

She is a very approachable and visionary leader. In 2018 and 2019, we positioned ourselves early with plans already in place for the intelligent computing centre and cross-border business.

Belly Li / Executive President, Guangdong Aofei Data Technology Co., Ltd.:

Why did we choose Nansha? Because Nansha has the capability to connect the entire Greater Bay Area. It also has the capacity to support the whole region’s digital infrastructure.

In the Qingsheng area of Nansha where we are based, the new campus of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology has also been established.

This allows us to draw on the university’s research and expertise, while the university can make use of our market and platforms to connect their research with real-world applications and bring technologies to market. That’s why I believe Nansha is a truly forward-looking place.

When I usually attend meetings with peers and our technical departments, there are really very few women. But I think women have a very distinct advantage, we possess qualities that combine strength with empathy. Women today are bold, resilient and determined.

I’m very busy and some days I hardly know where I am. Many of our projects are located beyond Guangzhou. From Monday to Friday, I focus fully on my work. On weekends, I reserve time for my family. My child is currently studying in Nansha. My work, my life, and my child are all here in Nansha.

Many young female entrepreneurs have excellent start-up projects. When I founded the Greater Bay Area Women Entrepreneurs Association, my goal was to bring together more exceptional women on a shared platform. I hope to use my resources to incubate more promising projects and help more young people with their aspirations. I believe that in the future, more outstanding female leaders will emerge.

Personally, I don’t want to be labelled. I am someone who truly enjoys exploring the unknown. Every day, I enjoy thinking about how our technology can intersect with different industries to create new products and possibilities. I may not have the answer today, but perhaps I will tomorrow.

I have always believed in not being defined, and in creating the unknown. That’s what I am doing now, and what I will continue to do in the future.