From investments in Tencent to Zoom, Hillhouse founder Lei Zhang is one of the world’s richest financiers

Just before the Coronavirus-induced US lockdowns began in March, some of the world’s investing elite gathered at an invite-only event in Silicon Valley.

Representatives for super-rich families and endowments crowded into Vina Enoteca, an Italian restaurant right by the Stanford University campus. They were there to hear from Lei Zhang, the charismatic founder of Hillhouse Capital Management Ltd. and from some of his top investments, including Zoom Video Communications Inc.’s Eric Yuan.

In a packed room — before social distancing became the norm — Zhang and Yuan discussed how technology can change work-life balance. Neither could have predicted how much Covid-19 would change Zoom, or the world.