BERKELEY -- Academics and entrepreneurs from China and the United States gathered on Sunday for a special summit to explore cooperation and opportunities.

At the University of California in Berkeley, the Berkeley-China Summit kicked off with a presentation about the political and business landscape between China and the U.S.
The session brought together investors and branding experts to discuss whether China's business model succeeds in the U.S.
"Of course, I answer yes. My business model comes from China, and we just get a success in the United States," said Belle Guo, co-founder of New Beginnings Creator Network.
Guo's New Beginnings Creator Network helps more than 4,000 U.S. creators and shop partners on TikTok reach greater audiences, promote brand awareness, and make money.
According to Guo, while a Chinese-influenced social media business model has helped, she also comes to realize that the U.S. is a very different market rather than the Gen-Z-dominated one in China.
"Everyone has also this misunderstanding of TikTok that we think the core buyer is also Gen Z. But the answer is totally wrong. Actually the core buyer on TikTok is [a younger generation like] the 35-year-old [age group] even plus woman [women] and [is] in the central area of the United States," Guo said.
The Berkeley-China Summit also brought in Chinese entrepreneurs who have utilized their cross-cultural experience and understanding to build a highly-successful business.
One of them is Larry Liu, co-founder of Weee!, an online grocery platform that was founded in 2015.
In the beginning, the startup delivered Chinese groceries to residents in the San Francisco Bay Area, who in turn would distribute orders to neighbors from their own garage.
Weee! now delivers directly to homes in almost every U.S. state. It is now valued at 4.1 billion U.S. dollars.
Weee's app-based service has now expanded to delivering special groceries to Latinos and other ethnicities in their native languages.
Founded in 2016, the Berkeley China Summit holds an annual summit and speaker series featuring high-level discussions about the latest discoveries, trends, and cross-border opportunities, hoping to encourage bilateral discussion and collaboration between the U.S. and China.