Sharp Elbows: Competition in China’s Internet and Investor Implications

At this 21st Century China Center-hosted webinar, Rick Carew, visiting lecturer at the University of Virginia and veteran Wall Street Journal reporter, will discuss the state of competition in China’s internet sector and its implications for investors and innovation in the years ahead. He argues that China’s technology giants have engaged in a fierce winner-takes-all battle for dominance in industries ranging from e-commerce to ride-hailing and messaging. Now, Chinese regulators are looking more closely at how they oversee national champions like Tencent and Alibaba by stepping up anti-trust enforcement and expanding oversight for tech firms.

This growing power of Big Tech and calls for a stronger government role in oversight is part of a global trend that includes U.S. investigations into Big Tech leaders like Google and Amazon. China’s decision to halt the record-breaking $34 billion initial public offering of Jack Ma’s fintech giant Ant Group epitomizes changing attitudes at senior levels of the Chinese government.

Carew considers what we can expect in terms of new regulation and evolving business practices as China’s tech firms adapt to change. He also shares what these changes mean for investors and executives involved in China’s tech world. This webinar will be moderated by UC San Diego professor Victor Shih.