TMTPOST -- Chinese businesses should not stop the cooperation with the United States, said He Weiwen, senior fellow, Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University, and former Economic and Commercial Counselor at Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco and New York. “We must persist in maintaining global collaboration and avoid confrontation,” He emphasized. He made the remarks on Friday at the 2024 T-EDGE Conference and TMTPost Annual Economic Meeting. He pointed out that global trade remains robust, with $23.8 trillion in exports recorded last year. While the U.S. imported $3.08 trillion, the remaining $20 trillion of global trade operates largely unaffected by U.S. influence. "Seventy-five percent of global trade still follows WTO rules. We should focus on this aspect and leverage opportunities domestically to secure new growth paths," he added. He highlighted the potential of artificial intelligence and big data as emerging fields ripe with opportunity for China. Despite significant gaps with the U.S. in these areas, He remained optimistic about China's prospects. "We are not at a disadvantage. Among the global top 10 unicorn companies, the leading one is Chinese. While the U.S. boasts about 700 unicorns, China has 340—half of the U.S. total and more than triple the combined numbers of the UK, France, Germany, and Canada," He noted. He urged Chinese companies to embrace innovation and find new competitive advantages in AI and other advanced technologies while continuing to foster international partnerships, particularly with the U.S.