Unternehmen in der OPC haben im Grunde keinen Investitionswert.

Let's first create a short introduction. The abbreviation OPC stands for "One Person Company", that is, a one - person enterprise. The concept is based on the idea that one person with a computer and a series of AI tools can handle the entire business cycle from product development to market launch.

In the past six months, this seemingly AI - era - tailored startup model has triggered a wave across the country. Especially at the political level - so far, many regions have placed OPC in an important position in their "15th Five - Year Plans". Regions such as Guangdong, Chongqing, Sichuan, Liaoning, Hubei and others have also issued special support measures at the provincial level. Data shows that 143 OPC communities have been established in 38 cities across the country, and this number is constantly growing.

We all know that more than 80% of the capital in the primary market comes from state - owned sources. This means that the decisions of the "state - owned team" essentially determine the direction and preferences of most of the capital in the market. For this reason, a consensus has gradually formed in the VC/PE field: Invest according to the government's statement.

If we follow this logic, OPC should be a focus for VC/PE investors. But after some conversations, I found that the reality in the primary market is quite different - many are interested in OPC, but only a few actually invest money. Some investors directly say: "OPC companies generally have no investment value."

01

Why is there such a discrepancy? Summarized, there are mainly three reasons, as several investors said.

First of all, it must be clear that, in contrast to specific industries such as Embodied Intelligence or Quantum Computing, OPC represents a startup model. Its underlying logic is rather similar to the "mass entrepreneurship and innovation wave" ten years ago - the difference is that OPC is wrapped in a new AI shell and emphasizes the simplicity of the organizational structure more.

Investment companies, on the other hand, look at the business itself, technical barriers, market size and growth curve. It doesn't matter much to them whether it is an OPC company or not.

In the business field, most OPC startups currently focus on AI + business services (e.g., data analysis, digital personnel representation), AI + vertical content (image and video playback), AI + cross - border e - commerce and AI + corporate consulting. These projects aim to offer AI - based efficiency improvements to small and medium - sized enterprises. The advantage is that the entry threshold is low, the implementation time is short and the monetization speed is fast. However, there is also the problem of low technical barriers and high replicability.

"To be honest, these areas do not have investment characteristics," says investor L. What is actually worth investing in is AI for science, such as using AI to support or independently conduct scientific research in areas such as new materials and innovative drugs. But he emphasizes that the number of such OPC projects is very limited and most of them are in first - and second - tier cities.

This leads to the second problem. Due to their minimalist organizational structure, OPC projects are naturally limited in their risk resistance and growth potential. Therefore, their dependence on the "ecosystem capabilities" behind them is also much higher than that of traditional startup teams. But the reality is that most OPC communities in third - tier cities and below do not have the resources to support their development.

According to the current support measures in different regions, the measures offered by most OPC communities are very similar - location subsidies, computing power support, accompanying funds. Although these measures lower the entry threshold for startups, they cannot solve the core problem of the survival of startups. Investor S says: "Whether one gets orders, whether there is supply - chain support and how active the capital in the region is are the key factors for the success of a startup."

02

Which OPC communities actually have self - sufficiency capabilities? The above - mentioned investors have also given some reference points, such as Beijing Haidian, Shanghai Pudong, Dongguan Songshanhu. These places have in common that the industrial clustering is high, the capital is dense and the supply chain is complete.

Take Haidian as an example. Data shows that there are more than 280,000 market participants, 265 listed companies, 49 unicorn companies and more than 3,200 financial and investment companies in Haidian. A startup founder once described it like this: "In Haidian, one can meet investors, contact initial test customers and quickly conduct product validation within an hour's drive."

A similar situation also occurs in Songshanhu. Investor S takes hardware startups as an example: "In Songshanhu, one can produce a mold in three hours and complete a prototype product in three days during hardware development, and the price is very favorable. Such an industrial environment cannot be easily replicated by distributing computing power vouchers."

But he also admits that even if all the above - mentioned factors are met, there is still a long way to go for OPC communities to reach the "project source" in the primary market. After years of operating a startup center, he has the direct feeling that perhaps 100 OPC companies do not even meet one investment criterion. "Because real experts don't need an OPC community. An expert in the field of nuclear fusion can raise 500 million yuan in capital alone, regardless of whether it is an OPC company or not. Those who choose to start a business through an OPC community are often ordinary people who cannot get capital in the primary market. This is a selection in itself."

Actually, it is not our intention to discredit OPC with all these explanations. After all, it is valuable to lower the entry threshold for startups and allow ordinary people to try out business models. One can even say that this is a dividend of the AI era for individuals. But in the context of the primary market, this is still a social experiment that needs to be observed patiently.

So let's wait and see for now.

This article is from the WeChat account "Touzhongwang", author: Wang Manhua, published by 36Kr with permission.