Fifteen Chinese
startups reached unicorn status last year alone; effectively 30% of the world’s
new billion dollar companies were created in China in 2017. While the world was
focused on the Orange Muppet and Brexit, China was focused on what is most likely
to prove the most significant shift of this century. What I mean here is
the transfer of global power from the west to China. China is busy re-shaping
the world around economics and technology and placing itself at the centre of
the debate in these issues. China is not focused on exporting its politics and
ideology. It prefers to build, innovate and prevail through economics. It
is building its ascendance through prodigious mercantile and technological
change and influence. Whilst the West is dealing is with its decaying
infrastructure and political systems China is using its one party system to
plan projects that can be barely fathomed in the West. Just look at the Belt
and Road Initiative. Even if they achieve half of what they say this will
be one of the largest projects on earth.
China’s Long Term strategy coupled with its huge population means that
it has a natural advantage in tech. It will lead the world in machine
learning with its ambitious roadmap for AI published last year. It just
has so much more information than anywhere else on earth and it has more people
online (and mobile!) than anywhere else so will have much more data for the
machines to learn from! It is focused on Blockchain which plays to China’s
significant geopolitical advantages. And finally it will lead the world in
electric vehicles. Just look at Didi alone that raised a further $4
billion to plough into AI, Electric vehicles and International Expansion. Didi
today is also the world’s most valuable start up. Not only did it kick Uber out
of China it also knocked it off the pedestal on the world stage by taking its
title of the World’s most valuable private company. China used to be
accused, rightly so, of stealing technology and building me too companies.
Those days are over! China now is focusing on innovation rather than
imitation! And having worked in China for nearly two decades let me tell
you when they focus on something – they get it done! Anyhow I am looking
at Chinese tech startups for Walpole Capital so watch this space for more
interesting information
