(Yicai Global) Jan. 13 -- The United States' economy could never have led to the birth of such companies as China's e-commerce giants Meituan-Dianping and Pinduoduo, according to Baidu's former chief operating officer.

The US economy is structured, whereas China's is a ladder-type economy that enables startups in the second to fourth tiers to emerge with the aid of technology, The Paper reported yesterday, citing Lu Qi as saying in a speech at Shanghai Jiaotong University on Jan. 11. China's first-level companies are basically the same as those in the US, Lu said, but its second to the fourth-level firms have greater opportunities thanks to technology.

Tencent Holdings-backed Pinduoduo, a Groupon-like online group discounter, was founded in 2015 and raised USD1.6 billion in its US initial public offering in 2018, making the Shanghai-based company one of the year's biggest listings. Set up in 2010, Meituan-Dianping is another group-buying website invested by Tencent and it is also one of the world's biggest online and on-demand delivery platforms. The Beijing-based company listed in Hong Kong in 2018, raising USD4.2 billion. At the time, it was the biggest internet IPO in four years.

China, the world's second-largest economy, has so many entrepreneurial opportunities because there are more macro factors at play than anywhere else, Lu said. They are: rising consumption, urbanization, a graying and growing population, along with the integrity and richness of the nation's substantial industry.

An expert in artificial intelligence, Lu founded and runs MiraclePlus, a fund that split from international startup incubator Y Combinator in November. He is also a former executive vice president of both Microsoft and Yahoo. The 58-year-old stepped down as Baidu COO in May 2018.

Lu went on to say in his speech that the world has just two major markets. One is US-centric, covering North America and Europe. The other is China-centric, and in the long run, it will encompass Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and other regions.

The future pattern of business is likely to relate to data, and whoever can capitalize on it will succeed, Lu said in reference to fields with good business prospects.

Lu's speech, entitled The Digital Wave: Entrepreneurship and Innovative Opportunities, was presented at the first event MiraclePlus has hosted independently.

Editor: Ben Armour