Heart Capital's Yanchen Liu: Finding Founders Who Stay Real Amid the Noise | VOICE

At the recently concluded JUMPSTARTER 2026, Shirley Liu, Partner at Heart Capital, shared her deep reflections on hard-tech investing during a "Women Investors Panel Discussion". That same day, she was named one of "Forbes China's 2026 Women Venture Capitalists".

As a Partner at Heart Capital, Shirley led investments in RoboSense, the global leader in LiDAR, and Air China Cargo, dubbed the "second stock of civil aviation mixed-ownership reform." Both benchmark companies have since listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and Shenzhen Stock Exchange respectively. Over her seventeen-year career, Shirley has maintained a sustained focus on new mobility, digital logistics, and global-facing technology, with portfolio companies including RoboSense (02498.HK), Air China Cargo (001391), World Logistics, Yunmanman Cold Chain, Xingneng Xuanguang, De Well Group, 4PX Logistics, Best Inc. (Best.US), and Shangyi Holdings (8482.TW).

Below are excerpts from Shirley's discussion:

Q1: What matters most to you when making investment decisions?

Shirley: We care deeply about a founder's original intention. Building a company is a long journey with ups and downs — it takes tremendous inner resilience to survive the hard moments. So conviction comes first.

Second, founders need clear self-awareness about what they can and cannot do. Misaligned self-perception leads to overlooked details and an inability to build stronger teams. Without this awareness, it's difficult to anticipate challenges.

Third, a founder's growth trajectory — their capacity for rapid learning and iteration — determines whether they can adapt amid change.

Finally, commercial instincts. With academic founders, we need to explore their non-academic side to assess whether they can make the leap from scientist to businessperson.

Q2: What are your absolute "red lines"?

Shirley: Integrity is my first criterion — that's a red line. But I'd add something about what moves us: for projects where our team is not in consensus, we actually pay more attention. We all have our comfort zones, but this is a rapidly changing world, especially in AI and hard tech. Our team respects each member's unique perspective, which may contain easily overlooked discoveries. We look to capture authentic signals amid the noise — we want to be moved.

So, a piece of advice for founders here: stay honest, present yourself authentically. If you can move us even a little, you will earn our genuine attention.

Q3: In the context of 2026, what makes a startup truly ready for a Series A?

Shirley: At Heart Capital, we focus primarily on Series A, though we often start tracking companies from the angel stage. At angel, it's mostly about the people — sometimes we follow a founder all the way to Series A. By Series A, the team is typically assembled, key milestones achieved, the demo is ready, and ideally PMF has been validated. These are the markers of Series A readiness.

Of course, team quality remains something we weigh very heavily.

Q4: How can founders get on your radar and capture your attention?

Shirley: Heart Capital is a research-driven fund. We identify directions based on industry evolution first, then search for companies within that thesis. At this stage, I conduct deep research.

How does a founder capture my attention? Building your narrative is crucial. Many hard-tech founders excel at technology and publishing papers, but struggle with storytelling. A good story isn't boasting — it reflects the founder's thinking. If you can tell a compelling story and attract talented people to join you, you can keep raising the next round, which is essential for survival.

So practice storytelling. Every founder should practice 1,000 times, 10,000 times.

Q5: What trend in Asia's startup ecosystem signals that it is maturing?

Shirley: One more thing — competition among investors today is fiercer than among founders. There are too many excellent founders and good ideas in the market. For outstanding companies, investors are fighting fiercely to win allocation. I see this as a very positive signal.

Founded in 2022, Heart Capital is an early-stage venture capital fund focused on technology and digitalization in China. The team is led by Yan Han, Founding Partner of Lightspeed China, alongside core investors, a CFO, and seasoned investors with deep industry backgrounds. Past investments include Series A bets on Xpeng Motors (NYSE: XPEV, 09868.HK) and Full Truck Alliance (NYSE: YMM), Pre-Series A in MetaX (688802.SH), as well as RoboSense (02498.HK), FinVolution (NYSE: FINV), LandSpace, Micro-Nano Satellite, Huitian, Xi Wang, ROX Motor, Sunmi, World Logistics, Baichuan, Yunmanman Cold Chain, Dedao, Lanhu, Starfield, and others. Rooted in China with a global outlook, Heart Capital seeks genuine value in non-consensus. We honor the value of people and champion the potential of the human spirit, aspiring to accompany more young Chinese entrepreneurs in strengthening China and reaching the world.