Ex-SpaceX Engineer Travels to Shenzhen for 8 Weeks, Advises All Hardware Startups to Go There

According to Beating, Zac Valles, a former Tesla autonomous driving and SpaceX Raptor team engineer, flew directly to Shenzhen 72 hours after his YC pitch event. After spending 8 weeks on-site and returning to San Francisco with new hardware, he strongly recommended that all hardware entrepreneurs move to Shenzhen immediately, regardless of funding, team, or ideas.

Valles highlighted key strategies for engaging supply chains: use major trade shows as entry points to factories, prioritize lead times over costs in early negotiations, and design simple components to avoid rejection from manufacturers. He suggested spending 4-6 hours surveying Huaqiangbei (Shenzhen’s electronics hub) and emphasized respecting local business culture as essential for partnership success.