In the latest Forbes 2024 list of Taiwan’s 50 wealthiest individuals, Barry Lam, the 75-year-old chairman of Quanta Computer Inc., has emerged as Taiwan’s richest person with a net worth of US$11.7 billion. His journey from a child growing up in a slum to becoming a giant in the AI industry and one of the world’s largest laptop manufacturers is legendary.
Barry has led Quanta with his self-created “turtle philosophy,” guiding the company to steady growth for decades. On May 4, 2024, during Quanta’s 36th-anniversary celebration, he remarked: “Quanta is not an ‘overnight success,’ but a ‘turtle,’ achieving success through consistent, incremental progress over 36 years, not by chance.”
Early lessons in perseverance
Born in Shanghai in April 1949, Barry Lam’s family fled to Hong Kong during the Chinese Civil War when he was just 6 months old. Despite growing up in a slum, he had a happy childhood filled with curiosity about animals and plants. His teachers often dismissed his questions, leading him to develop a habit of independent thinking.
After hearing the tortoise and the hare fable in first grade, he realized that the tortoise won because it stayed focused on its goal and never gave up. This lesson in perseverance became a cornerstone of his “turtle philosophy,” which he applied throughout his career at Quanta.
In high school, Barry developed a strong interest in astronomy and physics, often spending time stargazing and reading science fiction. He was particularly inspired by stories of inventors like Thomas Edison, which fueled his innovative spirit. He described himself as someone who never followed instructions when building with blocks, always creating something unique instead.
Despite his passion for learning, he only studied what he was interested in, leading to his initial failure to get into university in Hong Kong. Undeterred, he studied hard and was eventually admitted to the National Taiwan University, earning a bachelor’s and a master’s in electrical engineering.
The turning point
During his senior year, Barry became fascinated with computers and, along with his classmate Wen Shiren, developed Taiwan’s first mini-computer, earning a “Youth Medal” from then-Premier Chiang Ching-kuo.
After graduation, he worked as the chief engineer and plant manager at San Ai Electronics. In April 1973, he co-founded Kinpo Electronics with six colleagues, serving as general manager and later as general manager of the newly established Compal Electronics. A fire at Compal’s Pingzhen plant in 1987 led him to resign, allowing him to focus on his passion for designing laptops.
In May 1988, at 39, he co-founded Quanta with his friend Liang Ci-zhen. With an initial capital of just NT$30 million (US$936,000), the company started its first laptop production line in Taipei’s Shilin District. Barry managed every aspect of the new company, embodying his “turtle spirit” by steadily advancing and laying a solid foundation for Quanta’s future success.
The rise of Quanta
Quanta’s employees are well-versed in Barry Lam’s turtle philosophy. Yang Xiuyue, a former deputy manager in Quanta’s finance department, noted that while a turtle can’t outrun a rabbit, it wins by steadily moving forward, unlike the rabbit, which gets complacent. He recalled carrying a 15-pound laptop and accessories to pitch to clients and printing quotes on the spot to secure orders.
Barry and his team were frugal, staying in budget motels during business trips and working tirelessly to secure new business. Quanta’s reputation grew; by 1998, its laptop shipments exceeded 1 million units. In 1999, Quanta became the world’s leading laptop manufacturer; by 2001, it was the largest.
As the global tech industry diversified around 2000, Barry entered the cloud server market and established the Quanta Research Center. They secured their first cloud business in 2006. He believed Quanta’s innovation must align with future trends and human applications.
In 2004, Barry studied AI at MIT’s AI Lab, recognizing the vast potential of the AI market. He met Nvidia founder Jensen Huang, leading to a close partnership. Nvidia’s AI supercomputers, including the DGX-1 given to OpenAI in 2016, were developed in collaboration with Quanta.
Nvidia and AI’s boom
Founded in 1993, Nvidia saw its stock soar by 147 percent in 2024, driven by the AI boom. On June 5, Nvidia’s market value surpassed US$29.8 billion, making it the richest Chinese-American in 2024.
Jensen Huang has maintained strong ties with Taiwan, collaborating with local manufacturers to build AI factories and data centers. In May 2023, he visited Quanta’s subsidiary, YunDa Technology, at Computex Taipei, highlighting their collaboration.
In 2023, AI fever swept Taiwan, boosting Quanta’s stock price nearly threefold in six months. By October 6, 2023, Quanta’s market value reached NT10.8 billion, making him Taiwan’s richest person.
Barry advised Taiwan President Lai Ching-te that Taiwan has a competitive edge in producing everything from upstream chips to downstream server components. In 2024, Quanta secured significant orders from Google, Amazon AWS, and Meta for Nvidia’s GB200 AI chips.
Barry Lam’s leadership and vision
Despite Quanta’s success, Barry Lam remains proud of his engineering roots. He attributes the company’s growth to “foresight, precision, and resilience.” He is also an avid art collector, owning over 2,000 pieces, including at least 70 works by Zhang Daqian.
Barry met his wife, He Sha, at National Taiwan University. She is known for her low profile, rarely appearing in public. They have two sons, and there are rumors that He Sha wants their eldest son, Yuxuan, to succeed the elder Lam. However, he has publicly stated that the high-tech industry relies on brains, making it difficult to pass on to the next generation.
Barry’s health faced challenges a few years ago. Media personality Chen Wenqian revealed that she and Barry Lam were both diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma in 2019, deepening their friendship. At 75, he believes he is healthy and mentally sharp, planning to contribute to AI for another decade before considering retirement.
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