Zhou Yueliang: Truth Emerges When "Conscience" Is in an Open State

The principle of first principles is essentially about returning to conscience itself.

At the 2025 Influential Entrepreneurs Annual Meeting (formerly known as the China Business Leaders Annual Meeting) held in Beijing on December 6-7, Zhou Yueliang, Dean of Yangming Academy at the Communication University of China and a renowned scholar of traditional culture, delivered a keynote speech. Below are the key takeaways:

1. **Entrepreneurship and Cultural Elevation**: Businesses operate on a horizontal axis, producing tangible goods. However, when the vertical axis of culture is integrated, entrepreneurs transcend their roles, evolving from mere producers of material goods to creators of intellectual products. This marks the transition from entrepreneur to educator.

2. **First Principles and Conscience**: The essence of first principles lies in returning to conscience and the core of matters. Truth is not static—it is dynamic, emerging when conscience and reality are in an open, unobstructed state.

3. **Cultural Entrepreneurs in the AI Era**: In the age of AI, human consciousness drives innovation. Without innovation, humanity loses its purpose. Entrepreneurs must aspire to become cultural leaders, leveraging their innate creativity and moral compass.

4. **The Nature of Innovation**: True innovation occurs at the intersection of intuition and reason—a fleeting, serendipitous moment. It arises unexpectedly when one aligns with truth, conscience, and the essence of reality.

**AI and Human Consciousness**: Zhou categorized AI philosophies into three schools: - **"Taming Birds"**: Advocates for human control over AI. - **"Airplane"**: Focuses on rule-based governance for AI. - **"Emergence"**: The most optimistic view, where AI and humanity coexist symbiotically, fostering infinite potential.

In the dual-subject era, human qualities—emotion, desire, imagination, and unique life experiences—remain irreplaceable. AI cannot replicate human flaws or creativity. Entrepreneurs must harness consciousness for innovation, guided by conscience.

**The Role of Cultural Entrepreneurs**: Entrepreneurs transform ideas into lifestyles (e.g., Coca-Cola’s formula becoming a cultural phenomenon). Cultural entrepreneurs go further, elevating themselves while contributing to society. They shift from producing goods to shaping thought, embodying the transition from entrepreneur to educator.

**Conscience as the Foundation**: Conscience is universal but often obscured. Removing these obscurations reveals truth—what existentialism calls "unconcealment." Conscience is the innate ability to discern right from wrong, rooted in self-awareness and moral clarity.

**Three Tenets of Mind-Heart Philosophy**: 1. **"Mind is Principle"**: The mind embodies universal truth. 2. **"Unity of Knowledge and Action"**: True understanding (conscience) and action (innate ability) merge seamlessly. 3. **"Extending Conscience"**: Returning to conscience and engaging authentically with reality.

**Innovation and Serendipity**: Innovation stems from the spontaneous collision of intuition and logic. Like martial arts mastery, genuine breakthroughs arise unconsciously—when one least expects them.

**Final Advice**: Zhou concluded with Wang Yangming’s lifelong motto: *"Persist with patience."* In the AI era, shedding distractions to let conscience emerge is key to reinvention and growth.