Digitally China Podcast: China’s High-Rolling Startup Industry Hits the Brakes

Digitally China is a bi-weekly podcast from RADII hosted by Tom Xiong and Eva Xiao, and produced by Jacob Loven. On each episode, the team will tackle a different timely tech-related topic, providing key insights on all you need to know about the fast-changing nature of innovation in China. Find previous episodes of Digitally China here and subscribe on iTunes here.

Over the past five years, China’s internet industry has seen dizzying growth, with each year hitting record-levels of funding. In the second quarter of 2018, Chinese startups raised more venture capital than startups in North America for the first time.

But at the end of last year, the industry started winding down — fast. Rumors started about mass layoffs at different tech firms, from ecommerce giant JD to Quora-like Zhihu. Meanwhile, entrepreneurs braced themselves for a “capital winter.”

So is China’s startup scene finally facing the music after years of cash-burning growth? Is this just a market correction or a sign of worse things to come?

In this episode, we will cover:

• Extravagant stories from the good old days of China’s startup industry
• Factors contributing to the slowdown
• The impact on China’s tech industry and human cost of market correction

Guests:

• Gu Xi, marketing partner at Higgz Technology, a Beijing-based AI education startup focusing primarily on improving high school students’ learning capabilities.

• Chauncey Jung, a freelance writer based in Canada who focuses on technology, politics, and current affairs in China.

Listen to the latest Digitally China episode below or find it (and previous episodes) on iTunes here.