Moment of ‘Zen’: Another billionaire’s superyacht turns heads in Seattle

It’s 100 feet shorter and $100 million cheaper than Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s superyacht, but another billionaire’s ship had no trouble drawing attention in Seattle on Tuesday.

“Zen,” a $200 million, 289-foot yacht reportedly owned by Chinese billionaire Wu Guangming, motored smoothly through the Ballard Locks and out to Puget Sound, attracting onlookers along the railings of the popular Seattle destination.

Flying a Cayman Islands flag, the vessel displayed its port of registry, George Town, below its name on the stern.

Wu is the founder of China’s Jiangsu Yuyue Medical Equipment and Supply, which supplies devices such as rehabilitation machines, oxygen tanks and diagnostic equipment.

Forbes ranks Wu, with a net worth of $2.6 billion, No. 1251 on its 2026 list of billionaires. It wasn’t clear if he was onboard or why the vessel was in Seattle.

Marine Traffic listed Alaska as the ship’s reported destination.

The yacht’s fenders and lines were tended to by a dozen or so crew members wearing matching white shirts and black shorts. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers workers guided the ship through the Locks, which connect the waters of Lake Washington, Lake Union, and Salmon Bay to the tidal waters of Puget Sound.

“Tis the season,” said one worker when asked by GeekWire if it seemed like an unusual number of superyachts were sailing into Seattle these days. He said it was not the biggest he’d seen and besides, the Locks are long enough to hold the 600-foot Space Needle lying down.

Zuckerberg’s “Launchpad” arrived in Seattle on May 26 and turned heads with its own trip through the Locks before mooring on Lake Union and drawing even more attention before moving out.

Zen was built in 2021 by Feadship, the same Dutch shipbuilder that made Launchpad. According to Superyacht Times, Zen can accommodate 16 guests and 25 crew members. In the world rankings for largest yachts, it’s listed at number 141.

Matt Sunday of Green Lake was out for a bike ride Tuesday evening when he stopped to check out Zen at the Locks. A director of engineering at Boeing, Sunday said he was interested in how the boat navigated the waterway.

“I’m fascinated by the precision and how it’s using the bow thrusters,” Sunday said. “It looks like it’s got space, but it’s tighter than that captain wants it to be, I’m sure.”

Sunday said he couldn’t really fathom the wealth of someone who could own such a vessel, calling it “a $200 million toy.”

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