“I want to do more.” This was a passionate and determined statement from Bofei He, the founder and CEO of Deep Glint. It is a computer vision startup in China that seeks to apply 3D computer vision technology to artificial intelligence and pattern recognition for industries such as surveillance and traffic control. While Deep Glint was recently founded in 2013, Bofei first envisioned starting his own company as early as almost ten years ago. In an interview with Global China Connection last year, Bofei explained that he encountered many possible opportunities in the past to join startups. Yet, he decided not to join those because he wanted to do something much more meaningful. He said, “I am committed to not merely starting an influential company, but founding a company that would leave a lasting impact on human history.”
Story of Serendipity
Bofei spent the early part of his career serving as the General Manager of two multinational corporations, Intuit and Blackhawk Network. In June of 2013, he made the decision to leave the position that guaranteed him a stable and comfortable life. When asked about the reasons behind his resignation, Bofei replied, “There are plenty of reasons for me not to quit and start my own company. My decision to resign, thus, is driven mostly by passion, not reasons.” Bofei was not satisfied with his work; though he was still among the top in his industry and his peers, he was very certain that he wanted to do something different and something much more significant. In the one month after his resignation, Bofei spent most of his time contemplating about what he wanted to do next. It was not until one day that Xiaoping Xu, the angel investor who had always had faith in Bofei’s “future startup”, introduced Yong Zhao to him that he finally knew what he could do to change the world.
“I was just planning on speaking with him for half an hour but our conversation ended up to be thirteen hours”, Bofei laughed. As a previous Google research scientist, Yong Zhao worked on projects such as Google glass and 3D visual processing. He explained to Bofei about starting a company focusing on computer vision and artificial intelligence. While he himself was not an engineer or an expert in artificial intelligence, Bofei was thrilled about Yong’s idea. Bofei had always been convinced that merely innovating on business model would not possibly be as powerful and meaningful as creating new products and ideas. Therefore, Yong’s proposal really stroke Bofei as the remarkable opportunity that he saw the potential in this company to become the next “Google” or “Facebook”. Bofei admitted that it was serendipitous that he was finally able to put his entrepreneurial spirit in action in building Deep Glint, a company that focuses on an area that he scarcely knew before. In fact, Bofei joked, “Artificial intelligence chose me and it is not I chose it.”
Story of Challenges
It is universally acknowledged that being an entrepreneur is not an easy business, especially if he or she is exploring a relatively new industry. Bofei surely is no exception. He and his partner Yong encountered numerous challenges along the way. Bofei recalled one incident in which one of their hardware suppliers, an Israeli company, was acquired by Apple. Being bought by Apple essentially meant that the company would not sell their products to any other firms besides Apple. However, at that time Deep Glint only found this one particular company manufacturing the sensor that they needed.
“I know the hardest part is not about losing this supplier. It is about telling the entire team about our next step…Everyone is waiting for me to give a response to the news”, Bofei explained. As the leader of the team, he needed to calm everyone else and provide psychological support for the entire team. Aware of this fact, Bofei quickly generated a list of actions and steps they would take and he successfully reestablished confidence and faith in everyone. Luckily, this incident taught a great lesson to the team that they should focus more on their supply chains. Forced to explore the alternatives, the company eventually solved the problem and found many other choices that were even better than their originals.
Citing Peter Thiel, Bofei addressed his entrepreneurship experience as going from “zero to one”. He said, “Everyday I am dealing with problems I have never seen and never dealt with”. Nonetheless, it is through continuously facing these difficulties and working through them that provides him with valuable experience and makes him increasingly strong and optimistic. Particularly as a leader, Bofei believes it is vital to be optimistic – “Even if everyone sees this as impossible, you have to believe that it is possible”.
Story of the Future
Let computers see. Though it sounds quite ambitious, it is exactly the 3D computer perception technology that Deep Glint has been working on. However, as Bofei noted, if this technology cannot be applied to real life, it would be utterly worthless. As a result, Deep Glint chooses surveillance as the entry point. First of all, surveillance is a huge market since it is needed in both public and private spheres. Imagine now instead of hiring staffs to constantly stare at the screens, companies can use the cameras equipped with computer perception technology, which will enable them to “catch” suspicious activities on their own. It is much more efficient and economical as it would save much time and resources that could be put to use elsewhere. Bofei is confident that by penetrating the surveillance market first, Deep Glint is able to generate strong cash flow in the short term for the company. With a solid financial position, Deep Glint can quickly establish its leadership position in the public security market and then move on to expand to other potential markets.
At the same time, Bofei pointed out that becoming the dominant player in the surveillance market would be the short-term goal for Deep Glint. Later on, of course, Deep Glint strives to be the best company in developing computer perception technology in China. More importantly, Bofei underscored that when Internet becomes a basic infrastructure in the future, artificial intelligence will be the market that harbors innovation and creativity. Deep Glint’s long-term goal is, thus, to become the pioneer of artificial intelligence in China and, eventually, in the world. Bofei laughs, “I know it seems very ambitious, but Jack Ma has famously said ‘everyone should have a dream, what if that dream comes true?’”
Story of Entrepreneurs
Intelligent. Determined. Charismatic. Optimistic. All of the above characteristics can be used to accurately describe Bofei, who rose from a humble background to obtain a Stanford MBA and founding Deep Glint, one of the hottest startups in China. Nonetheless, when asked about to what would he attribute his success, Bofei quickly responded that he did not think he would deserve the word “success” at the present moment. Yet, he acknowledged that he does have something unique that sets him apart. That is, remarkably, elasticity. “Whenever I encounter an obstacle, I will always get up faster and climb higher. Of course, it is probably not something only one out of a million people will have, but it is something that is very difficult to do. Sometimes when everything goes too smoothly, I even hope I will encounter some type of challenge that would change the route I take”, Bofei says. It is a valuable and essential characteristic for entrepreneur, but Bofei did not think it is the most important one. He emphasizes that one thing that is of paramount importance to every entrepreneur is that, “Do the things you love. Nothing else.”
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