The Underdog Mentality

At a glance, Terence Zou looks like an ordinary man. But the founder and CEO of Ryde Technologies has had an extraordinary journey. Strap in for a ride.

- Farhan Shah

Terence Zou does not want your sympathy. While his peers grappled with examinations and puppy love, he had to bury his mother when he was 15. She was a homemaker and took up sewing and babysitting to supplement the meagre household income. “She wasn’t well-educated, but she taught me a lot. She gave emotional support for my studies and pushed me to study harder,” he recalls. Her belief in him led Zou, now 46, to be the only student from St Gabriel’s Primary School to score enough points to go to Raffles Institution.

His mother’s passing devastated the soft-spoken Zou. But it taught him two valuable life lessons: one, take nothing for granted and two, fight for yourself because no one else will. He had to grow up quickly to look after his two younger sisters while his father drove a taxi and was away most of the time.

After a period of mourning, Zou dusted himself off, determined to honour the memory of his mother. Raffles Institution might have been a completely different world for him – his schoolmates came from prestigious schools and affluent neighbourhoods while he was used to a life of struggle and simplicity – but Zou continued fighting, spurred on by the belief that academic achievements could give him a way out.

Many in his place would have lamented their terrible luck. Zou was made of sterner stuff. “I do not like to talk about my past,” he reflects, looking at his glass of whisky. “Sure, we all start from different points in life, but all of us are moving forward. We shouldn’t wallow in self-pity or lament on the hand you were dealt with. We should just focus on doing better.”