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Entrepreneurship has been central to China's transformation into the world's second largest economy since the country's reform and opening-up. Today, the entrepreneurial landscape is undergoing significant change. A new generation of entrepreneursshaped more by market dynamics than the legacy of central planningis taking the lead. Early ventures have grown into national champions, now grappling with complexityand the risk of complacency. Meanwhile, a stronger state presence and global headwinds have reshaped the policy and business environment. As China confronts demographic shifts and the limits of an export-led growth model, it once again turns to entrepreneurship to drive innovation and avoid the middle-income trap.

This handbook looks at the complex dynamics and changing nature of entrepreneurshipin China. It provides overviews of up-to-date research in four important areas: how Chinese entrepreneurs exercise their ability to seek and seize market opportunitiesin the face of uncertainty; how entrepreneurial firms in China facilitate the continuous leveraging of opportunities; how entrepreneurial ecosystems are evolving to support the entrepreneurial actions of both individuals and organisations; and how entrepreneurship is exercised as an instrument to address pressing societal challenges.

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Jun Li is an Adjunct Professor at SPJain London School of Management. He was previously Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at University of Huddersfield. He has held visiting professor appointments in several reputable Chinese universities. He is Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies and Guest Editor of Entrepreneurship and Regional Development. He served as a Board Trustee of Institute of Small Business and entrepreneurship UK (2017-2020) and in the Board of Chinese Economic Association UK (2008-2022). He was the President of Chinese economic Association UK in 2011-2012. Professor Li received his PhD in Economics from Lancaster University. His research interests centre on the intersection of entrepreneurship and innovation, including entrepreneurship and health, innovative entrepreneurship, open innovation, and innovation policy. He has published with Routledge two research monographs and co-edited two books. His research work appears in top ranking journals such as Research Policy, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, Regional Studies, Journal of Business Research, Small Business Economics, Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, among others.

Yuli Zhang is a Professor of Entrepreneurship and a doctoral advisor at Nankai University. Professor Zhang is the founding director of the Research Center of Entrepreneurship at Nankai University, and currently serves as the Dean of Innovation and Entrepreneurship School at Nankai University. He is also the Academic Director of the Nankai Business School. He is a member of the Management Division of the Science and Technology Commission of the Ministry of Education, and the National Steering Committee on Employment and Entrepreneurship for College Graduates. Professor Zhang received his PhD in Business Management from Nankai University. His current research and teaching interests include entrepreneurship management, firm growth, and management education. He is the principal investigator for two key projects of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and has published more than 100 papers in leading academic journals, including Journal of Business Venturing and Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. Professor Zhang has played a pivotal role in the country's development of entrepreneurship research and education. For his outstanding achievements and contributions, he has been sponsored by the Changjiang Scholars Program of the Ministry of Education, and has received special government allowances from the State Council. He has also received the Fudan Award for Outstanding Contribution to Management in 2016.

Ting Zhang is a Professor at the Merrick School of Business and Associate Director of the Jacob France Institute at the University of Baltimore. She holds the Harry Y. Wright Chair and has earned many honors, including the University System of Maryland Board of Regents Faculty Award in Scholarship/Research (2023), the University President's Award (2024), the Black and Decker Research Award (2025), Teaching Awards (four times), APPAM Faculty Fellow, Kauffman Foundation Fellowship, USDOL Fellowship, Best Paper Awards, etc. A past Chair of the North America Regional Science Council and President of Northeast Regional Science Association, Dr. Zhang has held leadership roles also with Association of Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) and Labor and Employment Relations Association, and served on Maryland's Equal Pay Commission. She has authored many journal articles, books, and book chapters, with research spanning human capital, employment, entrepreneurship, and workforce development. Her work appears in leading journals including Small Business Economics, Transportation Research Part A, Journal of Small Business Management, Applied Economics, etc. As Principal Investigator, she has secured over $10 million in grants from agencies such as the USDOL, USDA, the Gates Foundation, Maryland agencies. A sought-after speaker worldwide, her research has been cited by major outlets like Forbes, Bloomberg Businessweek, and Time, influencing both scholarship and policy.

Qu Jingjing is an Associate Professor at the Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and the Deputy Director of the Big Data Special Committee of Shanghai Open Information Technology Association. She obtained a PhD in entrepreneurship from the University of Essex in the UK. Her main research interests include the well-being of entrepreneurs, technological innovation and entrepreneurship, and the ethics and governance of artificial intelligence. She has published more than ten papers in journals and conferences such as Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice, Entrepreneurship & Regional Development and Academy of Management (AOM). Her primary focus in the field of entrepreneurship is on the relationship between work stress and happiness among entrepreneurs, particularly their resilience, abilities, psychological feelings and their impact on entrepreneurial success in the face of special situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic. She also pays attention to emerging entrepreneurial research topics, such as entrepreneurial models and innovation paths under open-source ecology.