alibaba. – Radio Free https://www.radiofree.org Independent Media for People, Not Profits. Tue, 27 May 2025 15:02:47 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.radiofree.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/cropped-Radio-Free-Social-Icon-2-32x32.png alibaba. – Radio Free https://www.radiofree.org 32 32 141331581 Manufacturing America’s Contenders https://www.radiofree.org/2025/05/27/manufacturing-americas-contenders/ https://www.radiofree.org/2025/05/27/manufacturing-americas-contenders/#respond Tue, 27 May 2025 15:02:47 +0000 https://dissidentvoice.org/?p=158587 Citing as being critical to protection of the United States’ defense, and a need to punish China’s alleged use of forced labor, U.S. government policies have restricted dozens of Chinese companies from operating on U.S. soil, exporting to the U.S, and receiving materials, including advance computer chips from U.S. and allied sources. All of these […]

The post Manufacturing America’s Contenders first appeared on Dissident Voice.]]>
Citing as being critical to protection of the United States’ defense, and a need to punish China’s alleged use of forced labor, U.S. government policies have restricted dozens of Chinese companies from operating on U.S. soil, exporting to the U.S, and receiving materials, including advance computer chips from U.S. and allied sources. All of these directives are a masquerade, so far from reality that they need no discussion. They have one purpose ─ to deter the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) from becoming the leading economic power and submerging the U.S. to a subordinate position. Previous articles — War with China, The Washington Post Bashes Xi Jinping, United States’ War With China Policy, China on Life Support – Does China know it?, Troublesome China Bashing, and China Disguised – Agendas Distort Facts and Guide Opinions have explored the topic. This article brings the discussion to fruition.

Departing from a policy from trying to speak with a unique voice and not being derivative, I prefer to publish a view that is similar to my own but has been already published, is highly informative, and is eloquently expressed.

The secret sauce of Chinese industrial success
Smart state planning plus ferocious market competition
Hua Bin, May 23

The planning function is carried out by the China State Planning and Development Commission, which assembles the best minds in the government, academia, think tanks, and industries and goes through multi-year research, studies, and survey to understand and predict key technological trends and future market demand. Then they iterate and socialize the plans until there is broad buy-in.

Once top-line state planning priorities are set, central government empowers local governments to implement the policies. At the implementation level, fierce market competition becomes the norm.

Local governments compete with each other. Each local government is powerfully incentivized to create local tech and industrial champions as career advancements are typically tied in with achievements of national priorities.

Local governments unleash suites of policy support measures to attract and help businesses succeed, including

  • Preferential tax
  • Land use priority
  • Preferential bank loans, even venture capital financing from government agencies (e.g. Shanghai and Shenzhen each has multi-billion dollar semiconductor funds)

Other policy support even extends to

  • Establishing educational programs at universities to train and develop scientific and technical talents specifically for identified industries and technologies (e.g. AI, robotics, hypersonics, rare earth mining and refining, rail, ship building, etc.)
  • Rolling out talent acquisition programs to provide housing, allowances, and compensation equalization schemes to attract talents to move to their cities. Some governments even provide WeWork type of office facilities to startups for free.
  • investing in infrastructure upgrades including 5G coverage, EV charging stations, high speed rail, ports, bridges, etc. to enable smooth operation of large industrial enterprises.
  • Investing in local parts and components supply chains that can be plugged into specific manufacturing sectors.
  • Promoting successful technical leaders and executives in critical industries into senior government positions (e.g. the head of AVIC, the leading aeronautic business in China, was promoted to become a provincial governor)

The central government went so far as to crack down on monopolistic consumer tech companies such as Alibaba and Tencent in 2019 as these companies were consuming too much financial and talent resources and preventing startups from emerging. The main goal of the crackdown was to redirect resources (funding, talent) to more productive directions such as AI and hard tech.

As a result, in the key technological and industrial hubs across China, from Shanghai, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Chengdu to Hefei and Changsa, you will find hundreds of EV companies, solar energy companies, AI and robotics startups, ship builders, and drone companies that are developing innovative technologies, building production capacity, and engage in intense competition for consumers.

In the competition, there are private businesses, state owned enterprises, and foreign companies as well. All have to compete for customers on price and quality and operate with razor thin margin. Innovation and cost efficiency are prized in the never-ending loop of hyper competition.

The Chinese industrial and technological ecosystem is often described by insiders as “arena for gladiators”. In a survival of the fittest environment, the winners of such competitions emerge as world class champions.

The same model is replicated in industry after industry from EV, smart phones, solar energy, robotics, ship building, AI large language models, drones, chip making, and biopharmaceuticals.

Many people mistakenly assume the Chinese state planning model means the government picks the winners and losers. That cannot be further from the truth. State planners pick the priority industries, define the swim lane, provide policy incentives, and then market takes over to decide the winner.

In contrast, the US industrial policy is more guilty of government picking winners – just witness how both Biden and Trump surround themselves with senior executives of incumbent tech giants when they announce policies such as the Chips Act, Inflation Reduction Act, or the Stargate program. Almost by definition, the main beneficiaries of these industrial policies will be the companies in the room. Market competition doesn’t seem to play the same decisive rule as in China.

As China accelerates the third mixed-economy phase of its industrial development, we can expect to see more Chinese companies will innovate faster, scale in the largest single market in the world, and become world-class competitors in their industries. Profit margins will be kept low as competition will never rest. However, more consumer surplus will accrue to customers, leading to improvement of living standards for all.

Hua Bin details the advances in China’s economy and describes why those advances will continue and cannot stall ─ the government apparatus plans ahead, outlines alternative directions to roadblocks, and facilitates shifts in production, enabling government industry to step in when private initiative falters. No matter how the U.S. contends China, the PRC will find a way to deter the contention and, in the end, the U.S. will lose, and lose until, as a last resort….

The post Manufacturing America’s Contenders first appeared on Dissident Voice.


This content originally appeared on Dissident Voice and was authored by Dan Lieberman.

]]>
https://www.radiofree.org/2025/05/27/manufacturing-americas-contenders/feed/ 0 535006
China’s AI “Embracing Open Source” Offers Insights to the World https://www.radiofree.org/2025/02/14/chinas-ai-embracing-open-source-offers-insights-to-the-world/ https://www.radiofree.org/2025/02/14/chinas-ai-embracing-open-source-offers-insights-to-the-world/#respond Fri, 14 Feb 2025 17:04:58 +0000 https://dissidentvoice.org/?p=155963 The breakthroughs in China’s artificial intelligence (AI) technology have sparked ongoing reverberations internationally. Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, publicly praised DeepSeek in recent days, saying it did some “nice work.” In a surprising 180-degree shift, he also expressed a desire to “work with China.” At the recently concluded Paris AI Action Summit, the French […]

The post China’s AI “Embracing Open Source” Offers Insights to the World first appeared on Dissident Voice.]]>
The breakthroughs in China’s artificial intelligence (AI) technology have sparked ongoing reverberations internationally. Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, publicly praised DeepSeek in recent days, saying it did some “nice work.” In a surprising 180-degree shift, he also expressed a desire to “work with China.” At the recently concluded Paris AI Action Summit, the French startup Mistral, also using an open-source model, was placed under high expectations. Moreover, when news broke of Apple collaborating with Alibaba to develop localized AI functions, both companies experienced a surge in their stock prices.

The fact is, China’s AI companies’ “embrace of open source” has not only paved new paths for their own growth but has also spurred demand for cross-border AI collaborations among enterprises. It is driving the global AI ecosystem to transform toward “open-source inclusivity.”

By offering some of its models for free, DeepSeek has ensured that the digital dividends of the AI era are shared equitably among all internet users. This decentralized, open-source strategy stands in stark contrast to the closed ecosystems, high resource barriers, and monopolization by a few players that have characterized AI technology in Western countries. It aligns with the global process of technological democratization. Silicon Valley venture capitalist Marc Andreessen wrote on social media platform X that as open-source, DeepSeek R1 is “a profound gift to the world.”

In recent years, China has been actively developing multiple national-level AI open innovation platforms, providing open access and shared computing resources. It can be said that the success of “open-source” large models is deeply rooted in the rich soil of “open source.” We observe that the development of AI technology follows a spiral progression of “open source-innovation-iteration,” a logic that also underpins global technological and economic development.

Today, from DeepSeek’s open-source ecosystem to Baidu’s Apollo autonomous driving open platform, from cost reduction and efficiency improvement in the pharmaceutical industry to collaborative innovation among multinational enterprises, these practices collectively illustrate a fundamental truth: The future of AI belongs to openness and sharing. Open source and inclusivity can certainly become a model for collaborative win-win scenarios in the global AI field, empowering and promoting sustainable development in the era of intelligence.

On February 12, The Conversation, a news website based in Australia, published an article stating that Chinese enterprises’ embrace of open-source AI “promises to reshape the AI landscape almost overnight.” The key drivers behind China’s rise in AI, in addition to being “fast” and “collaborative,” also include being “market-driven.” Thanks to China’s robust industrial supply chain, AI technology is being implemented at an astonishing pace. This is evident in the recent wave of adoption sparked by DeepSeek in China: Over a dozen local cloud-based AI chip manufacturers have announced compatibility or launched DeepSeek model services, several cloud computing giants have pledged support for DeepSeek, and industries such as telecommunications, automotive, brokerage, and education are rapidly integrating DeepSeek. This signifies that AI will play a leading role in driving the development of new quality productive forces, acting as a catalyst for broader innovation and overall economic quality improvement in China. It will also create new opportunities and possibilities for international cooperation.

At the recent Paris AI Action Summit, representatives from over 60 signatories, including China, jointly released a document titled “Statement on Inclusive and Sustainable Artificial Intelligence for People and the Planet.” Notably, only the representatives from the US and the UK did not sign. This indicates that the self-centered, exclusive and hegemonic logic of AI development has little market appeal internationally, while China’s advocated concept of open, inclusive, mutually beneficial and equal AI governance is recognized and accepted by the vast majority of global members.

Isolating oneself to pursue development without an environment for communication and competition risks being replaced by entirely new pathways, regardless of how high computational power is amassed. Only through open collaboration can we address global issues such as the distribution of computational power and the establishment of ethical standards. Attempting to maintain a competitive advantage in the AI era by digging “moats” is akin to dreaming, let alone opening the “interstellar gate.”

Moreover, closing the door on China means losing opportunities for exchanges involving advanced technologies. Some media outlets have pointed out that American companies’ further utilization of China’s open-source technology potential may be constrained by domestic political barriers.

Currently, the global development of AI is at a crossroads. Should we continue to rely on the hegemony of computing power to build technological barriers, or should we strive for common prosperity through inclusive cooperation? China’s answer is to promote innovation through open-source initiatives and seek development through inclusivity. As China integrates into the global technology network with a humble and open attitude, the world becomes more vibrant due to the convergence of diverse forces. The future of AI development may be defined by “symbiosis in competition.” The dawn of technological equality is beginning to emerge, and China looks forward to joining hands with the world to create a more inclusive era of intelligence.

The post China’s AI “Embracing Open Source” Offers Insights to the World first appeared on Dissident Voice.


This content originally appeared on Dissident Voice and was authored by Global Times.

]]>
https://www.radiofree.org/2025/02/14/chinas-ai-embracing-open-source-offers-insights-to-the-world/feed/ 0 514030
More US Controls on China’s Chip Industry https://www.radiofree.org/2023/10/28/more-us-controls-on-chinas-chip-industry/ https://www.radiofree.org/2023/10/28/more-us-controls-on-chinas-chip-industry/#respond Sat, 28 Oct 2023 14:25:37 +0000 https://dissidentvoice.org/?p=145306 This week’s News on China.

• More US sanctions against Chinese chip industry
• China tightens graphite export controls
• Industrial renaissance in northeast China
• China approves GM soybeans and corn


This content originally appeared on Dissident Voice and was authored by Dongsheng News.

]]>
https://www.radiofree.org/2023/10/28/more-us-controls-on-chinas-chip-industry/feed/ 0 437236
Village Basketball and Football Championships https://www.radiofree.org/2023/07/01/village-basketball-and-football-championships/ https://www.radiofree.org/2023/07/01/village-basketball-and-football-championships/#respond Sat, 01 Jul 2023 15:33:21 +0000 https://dissidentvoice.org/?p=141723 This week’s News on China.

• Alibaba Cloud will broadcast 2024 Olympics
• Taiwanese leader’s popularity slumps
• World’s largest hydro-solar power plant
• Village basketball and football championships


This content originally appeared on Dissident Voice and was authored by Dongsheng News.

]]>
https://www.radiofree.org/2023/07/01/village-basketball-and-football-championships/feed/ 0 408862
Kevin McCarthy Wants to Hold China Accountable. His Top Aide Lobbied for Alibaba. https://www.radiofree.org/2023/01/13/kevin-mccarthy-wants-to-hold-china-accountable-his-top-aide-lobbied-for-alibaba/ https://www.radiofree.org/2023/01/13/kevin-mccarthy-wants-to-hold-china-accountable-his-top-aide-lobbied-for-alibaba/#respond Fri, 13 Jan 2023 19:31:21 +0000 https://theintercept.com/?p=419122

Immediately after being elected House speaker, Rep. Kevin McCarthy vowed to hold Beijing accountable. “We will create a bipartisan select committee on China to investigate how to bring back the hundreds of thousands of jobs that went to China, and then we will win this economic competition,” the California Republican said early Saturday morning after a dramatic 15-vote series that elected him to lead the GOP majority in the lower chamber.

On Tuesday, the House of Representatives made good on McCarthy’s promise, voting 365 to 65 to establish the House Select Committee on China, which will be chaired by foreign policy hawk Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis. “Here’s the good news: There is bipartisan consensus that the era of trusting Communist China is over,” gloated McCarthy from the House floor.

McCarthy and Gallagher wrote an op-ed for Fox News last month declaring “a new cold war” between China in the United States. “Our goal will be to promote overwhelming economic superiority,” wrote the GOP duo, “by developing policies to prohibit state and local pension funds—the same entities evangelizing for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investments—from investing in China.”

That could spell trouble for McCarthy’s chief of staff Daniel P. Meyer, who owns somewhere between $250,000 and $500,000 worth of shares in Alibaba Group Holdings Limited — one of the largest companies in China, with close ties to the Chinese government. Before joining McCarthy’s office, Meyer was president of the Duberstein Group, a firm that earned millions lobbying on behalf of Alibaba in the U.S.

Meyer’s Alibaba investment is the largest by far of the 132 entries listed under assets and “unearned income,” according to his 2021 financial disclosure statement — the most recent available — obtained by The Intercept from the House Office of the Clerk.

In 2021, Alibaba spent over $3 million to hire 34 lobbyists to push the company’s agenda on trade, telecommunications, copyright, and other areas, according to Open Secrets. Duberstein Group collected the largest fees by far from Alibaba.

Meyer worked as a lobbyist for Alibaba during his time as a top executive at Duberstein in the decade before joining McCarthy’s team. Between 2011 and 2021, Duberstein Group collected $3.7 million in lobbying fees from Alibaba, with Meyer listed as the registered lobbyist for the Chinese multinational company from 2012 to 2019.

A 2018 report by Lee Fang and Nick Surgey for The Intercept found that Alibaba had joined the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, a controversial group that ghostwrites legislation for corporations and other special interest groups.

“We are probably the world’s largest e-commerce company you have never heard about. We have business-to-business marketplace solutions. We have VC marketplace solutions. And we have over 500 million active buyers on our marketplaces,” said Alibaba lobbyist Bill Anaya at an ALEC summit in Nashville in 2017.

Meyer is a former senior aide to ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich and also served as a legislative aide to President George W. Bush. “Dan Meyer played a key role in developing the Contract with America [a set of 10 bills undermining the social safety net and cutting government spending in 1994] and in helping lead the House Republicans out of 40 years in the minority wilderness. He went on to be a superb legislative liaison for President George W. Bush,” Gingrich told Politico when Meyer joined McCarthy’s staff in 2019.

Neither Meyer nor McCarthy’s office replied to email requests from The Intercept for comment on his significant Alibaba investment.


This content originally appeared on The Intercept and was authored by Pablo Manriquez.

]]>
https://www.radiofree.org/2023/01/13/kevin-mccarthy-wants-to-hold-china-accountable-his-top-aide-lobbied-for-alibaba/feed/ 0 364401