Future Factory × Illuminious: Shenzhen Founder Tour

It is a six-day factory tour in Shenzhen for up to 20 hardware founders, December 6–11, 2026. You visit factories, robotics and hardware companies, and the local startup community. You meet the teams who run them and spend the evenings with the group. It is a licensed Future Factory program, hosted by Illuminious.

Factories open their doors more easily to a group that arrives with introductions. We handle translation, transport and the schedule, so you do not lose days to planning and long drives. You also compare notes with founders who have the same problems as you.

We visit three kinds of places, all in Shenzhen. These are factories that make parts and products, robotics and hardware companies, and local maker and startup communities. One stop is the Illuminious Shenzhen factory. Visit sites change with each cohort, and we name them after acceptance.

Shenzhen, Guangdong, China, from Sunday, December 6, to Friday, December 11, 2026. Arrive on Sunday for check-in, an icebreaker and the opening dinner. Then you have five full visit days. The week closes on Friday night. Your acceptance email confirms the hotel and check-out details.

English. Our team runs every session in English, and translation is included at every visit. You can ask factory teams detailed technical questions. You do not need to speak Chinese.

Max 20 founders per cohort. A small group fits on one bus and gets real time with the people at each visit. We review applications on a rolling basis, so places can fill before the early-bird date.

Illuminious owns a factory in Shenzhen, and one stop of the week is that factory. You can work with any partner you meet. Joining the tour creates no obligation to use Illuminious. Illuminious takes no commission from the factories you visit.

No. Huaqiangbei shows you how electronic parts are sold and how new products reach the shelves. Many stalls are showrooms for factories elsewhere. Buy production parts through your manufacturer or an authorized distributor.

Illuminious hosts the tour as a licensed Future Factory program. Future Factory runs factory trips in Shenzhen for hardware founders. Illuminious is a US-headquartered manufacturer with its own factory in Shenzhen.

The fee is USD 3,000 for applications received by Nov 15, 2026 (11:59 pm Pacific), then USD 3,500. The fee covers your hotel room, meals, ground transport, translation, all visits, and photo and video. Flights, visa and travel insurance are not included. Applying is free. You pay the fee only after you are accepted.

The fee is per person and covers your own hotel room for the tour nights. Room details come with your acceptance email.

Rules as of October 17, 2026. Check them again before you book. Many EU passport holders can enter China without a visa for short business or tourism stays. That policy is set to run until the end of 2026. US citizens usually need a visa, unless they qualify for visa-free transit to a third country or region. Confirm with the Chinese embassy or consulate for your passport. After acceptance, we give visa guidance and, on request, an invitation letter.

The group travels together with a local team, and we arrange ground transport for every visit. You stay in the same hotel as the rest of the group. Travel and medical insurance is not included. Buy cover for the whole trip, including your flights.

Refund terms are shared on acceptance, before you pay anything. Applying is free and does not commit you to the trip. If we accept you, you get the full itinerary, the payment details and the refund terms together.

Fill in one application. It takes a few minutes. We review applications on a rolling basis and reply by email. Accepted founders get the full itinerary, payment details and refund terms. Applications received by Nov 15, 2026 (11:59 pm Pacific) qualify for the USD 3,000 early-bird fee.

Yes. Our Luma and Partiful event pages ask short versions of the same questions. Every application gets the same review, and we reply by email. The form on this page is the quickest way to apply.

Applications stay open on a rolling basis until the cohort is full. Applications received by Nov 15, 2026 (11:59 pm Pacific) qualify for the USD 3,000 early-bird fee.