Page 172 - How China Is Winning the Tech Race

not another copycat Internet start-
up. But first, full-scale production
“Right now, most of Chinese technology is must be cranked up, a test of com-
mediocre, and it would be hard to find a mercialization that most labs fail.
leading-edge technology company. At some
point in time, technology breakthroughs from The start-up’s trade secrets are
China will happen. The question is when.” closely guarded. Even leading tech-
nology analysts such as Jagdish
Jed Dorsheimer,
Rebello of the Silicon Valley re-
vice president, equity research, search firm iSuppli Corporation are
Canaccord Adams
surprised to hear about it. “If it’s
true that they can make LEDs on
silicon, this is really a break-
through,” says Rebello. “This is
the holy grail of LEDs.” Senior analyst Jed Dorsheimer with the Boston
financial service firm Canaccord Adams doubts that LatticePower has
mastered the technology. “Right now, most Chinese technology is mediocre,
and it would be hard to find a leading-edge technology company,” he says.
“At some point in time, technology breakthroughs from China will happen.
The question is when.”
The investors in LatticePower are convinced that the answer is now.
Ask Sonny Wu, who manages the Chinese venture firm GSR. He says that
LatticePower has “the missing link to energy savings in lights.” He has led
three groups from the United States, Taiwan, and Singapore to invest $45
million 14 in the lighting start-up.
He recently recruited a new high-
powered CEO to LatticePower:
“We want to lead LatticePower toward a Tony Liu, the former head of the
billions IPO.” publicly traded semiconductor firm
ASMC, 15 and a Ph.D. from UC-
Sonny Wu,
Berkeley with 10-plus years of
managing director, GSR Ventures
experience in China as a plant and
general manager. Wu says that Lat-
ticePower is aiming for an initial
public offering, possibly by 2010, that will put high-flying publicly traded
Chinese tech companies to shame. “We are not rushing it,” says Wu. “We
want to lead LatticePower toward a billions IPO,” he says, pointedly not

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