Silicon Dragon Forum Propels Pasadena’s Links To China
Silicon Dragon’s Rebecca Fannin with Andy Wilson of Innovate Pasadena and KY Cheng of East West Bank.
Just months ahead of Pasadena becoming a hub for massive Chinese ecommerce heavyweight Alibaba, investors and innovators from around the world gathered at the Silicon Dragon conference, setting the stage for wider-spread recognition of Pasadena as a gateway to China.
Having made its way around the world to the top innovative technology hubs, Silicon Dragon’s conference makes its first stop in the Los Angeles area by visiting the Pasadena Convention Center with a focus on facilitating cross-border, East-and-West connections.
The conference comes to Pasadena at a time Chinese investment dollars are hitting the streets of Pasadena with rapid fire —Alibaba will soon move into a 22,000 square foot office space in Pasadena’s Playhouse Plaza (read Forbes article) and later this year a company called Blank Spaces will open a Pasadena location backed by Chinese investors.
East West Bank is already a central player in Pasadena as well as the Singpoli Group investors who now reside on Colorado Boulevard and Lake Avenue, among others.
“Pasadena is rising. I think we are seeing much more of an innovative technology edge to Pasadena,” said Rebecca Fannin, founder of Silicon Dragon, a Forbes columnist and author. “I think you will see the culture change for the city, this is what the economic base needs. It needs start-ups and entrepreneurs to bring energy and make the city come alive.”
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