Who do you think the Chinese government considers its biggest rival? The United States, right? Actually, the Chinese government considers its biggest rival to be its own technology companies. It's China's tech companies who threaten its capacity to build a competitive China. That's why the Chinese government is cracking down on social media — for example, by limiting the number of hours youth can play video games, and banning cell phone use in schools. China's restrictions on social media use may be autocratic, but may also protect users more than what we see coming from the US government.It’s a complicated picture.This week on Your Undivided Attention, we're having a surprising conversation about technology in China. Here to give us a fresh take are two guests: investor, analyst, and co-host of the Tech Buzz China podcast Rui Ma, and China internet expert and author of Alibaba: The House That Jack Ma Built, Duncan Clark.

Rui Ma, a prominent China tech commentator in the U.S., and Robert Wynne, a seasoned industry veteran, dive into the groundbreaking success of 'Black Myth: Wukong.' They explore the game's phenomenal reception in China and its potential in the U.S. market. The duo discusses the challenges of conveying its cultural narrative to Western players and the intricacies of the gaming landscape in China versus mobile gaming. They also critique the game’s marketing strategies and highlight the promising future of AAA titles from China.

We team up with two of the very best English-language analysts covering China tech today, Rui Ma and Ying Lu from the Tech Buzz China podcast, to talk about the big trends happening on the ground in China right now. We've had Rui and Ying's episodes on repeat in our own podcast players for many years as we researched our Meituan, PDD, Tencent and Alibaba episodes, and we're so excited to have them finally join us live. We had a blast and learned much more about what's actually happening in the world's largest market than the relative trickle of news Western audiences normally receive. Tune in!Sponsors:WorkOS: https://bit.ly/workos25Huntress: https://bit.ly/acqhuntressStatsig: https://bit.ly/acquiredstatsig24More Acquired!:Get email updates with hints on next episode and follow-ups from recent episodesJoin the SlackSubscribe to ACQ2Merch Store!© Copyright 2015-2025 ACQ, LLCTopics and trends covered:How Rui and Ying stay on top of trends in China tech remotely from the USThe rise of “tech company like” CPG and other consumer brands in China and extremely fast product development and iteration: e.g., Genki Forest, Perfect Diary and SheinCommunity group buying and the reinvention of commerce in rural China (along with an eye-opening discussion of what qualifies as “rural” in China... which is very different from the West!)Autonomous and electric vehicle design and production in China (which is the world's largest car market), and the government's push for China to become a global leader in bothThe current state of anti-trust in China and why investors and operators on the ground in China are optimistic about recent developmentsLinks:Tech Buzz China: https://www.techbuzzchina.comTBC's fantastic Insider community for investors and operators: https://www.techbuzzchina.com/insider