Groups of people dressed in jeans and hoodies huddle around laptops on desks. Others lounge on couches in front of videogame consoles in the open-concept space inside an office block, their gaze only diverted when a man whizzes past on a tiny skateboard.

No, this isn’t Silicon Valley. This is Shenzhen, southern China, perhaps one of the most exciting startup hubs on the planet.

While factories close and companies downsize across China as slowing economic growth wreaks its toll, this 5,000-sq.-meter shared space called Simply Work in Shenzhen’s Nanshan district remains abuzz. All of its more than 40 offices are occupied and there is a waiting list of around 20 groups to join the venue, which caters mainly to mobile Internet entrepreneurs, said Jiang Yangjing, Simply Work’s co-founder and chief financial officer.

“The groups that are here are very motivated to start their own businesses and for now, they’re not letting the economic slowdown change their minds,” said Ms. Jiang.

Shenzhen’s vibrant technology startup scene is in contrast to the city’s stock exchange, which has plunged more than 40% since June as China’s market rout triggered global jitters that damaged equity prices world-wide. It has benefited from a surge in nationwide venture capital investment in early-stage tech startups, which jumped to $7.66 billion last year from $2.28 billion in 2014 and $953 million in 2013, according to AVCJ research.