The question posed to Wen Han, founder of the electric truck maker Windrose Technology, was a simple one: Is it accurate to call the firm a Chinese company?
After some rambling, Mr. Han settled on an answer: “I would describe it as Chinese origin.”
There’s a reason it felt like a trick question: Windrose’s investors include an Australian property group, U.S. venture capital financiers and Chinese state-owned funds. It is now based in Belgium. But at its heart, Windrose packs China’s significant advantages in making electric vehicles.
Mr. Han wants to use that edge to sell long-haul trucks globally. He is intent on taking his company public in New York, saying he plans to file the initial paperwork within the next month to raise up to at least $400 million.
While the business proposition is simple, the execution is anything but — complicated by geopolitics, trade tensions and a surge of protectionism. Mr. Han is mindful of what he calls Windrose’s “Chineseness.”
Born in China’s coal country, Mr. Han, 34, grew up when Chinese globalization did not trigger the kind of political distrust in the United States that it does now. He attended Williams College in Massachusetts and worked at the American hedge fund Bridgewater Associates. His life has spanned both countries. Now, he is pushing for Windrose to do the same in a fracturing world.
“China will never be America’s best friend, not in our lifetimes,” he said. “However, China doesn’t have to be the enemy forever, and not everyone from China has to be the enemy.”