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China has sharpened its tech sector, not destroyed it
Beijing’s crackdown has reshaped its innovation ambitions.
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This existential threat of losing to the US is being used as a driving force for China’s tech ambitions.
PPHOTO: REUTERS
Catherine Thorbecke
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To most Western observers, it would appear that China has driven its technology industry off a cliff.
The number of start-ups fell by 50,000 between the peak in 2018 and 2023, with 2024 on track to be even lower. The market capitalisations of the biggest tech companies, including Alibaba Group Holding and Tencent Holdings, have shrunk to the tune of hundreds of billions, and pale in comparison with US peers. There is no sign that the sector will ever rebound
