Daily Productive Sharing 1165 - On China

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At the end of last year, Dwarkesh Patel spent two weeks traveling in China and documented some interesting observations:

1. China and the U.S. face opposite issues: the U.S. subsidizes demand while restricting supply, whereas China subsidizes supply while restricting demand.
2. Even in rural China, many people live in apartment buildings rather than standalone houses.
3. Government buildings follow a consistent pattern: massive structures separated by wide boulevards, seemingly designed in part for social control.
4. Surveillance cameras are everywhere in China. While this may sound naïve, Patel couldn’t understand why—there’s little crime. He acknowledged it might be to prevent protests.
5. Similar to how school shootings are widely covered in U.S. media but unlikely to be personally experienced, protests against the Chinese Communist Party are rare and unlikely to be encountered.
6. Almost everyone he spoke to admitted the economy wasn’t doing well, with many blaming government policies.
7. A CEO of a successful social media startup shared that some of the most popular accounts discuss topics like feminism and other seemingly progressive ideas. As long as these posts don’t criticize the regime or specific leaders, they’ve never been censored.
8. While China is an authoritarian regime, it’s far from North Korea. Patel acknowledged feeling uneasy about some aspects but noted the stark difference.
9. He found it puzzling that China faces both a population collapse and massive youth unemployment.
10. One explanation he heard was that while there are many low-skill jobs available, today’s high school- and college-educated youth are unwilling to take on the jobs their parents and grandparents once did.
11. The real gap lies in high-skill jobs that align with their education and aspirations, leading to a mismatch between available jobs and jobs the youth feel qualified and willing to do.
12. He noted an absence of a vibrant intellectual ecosystem in China. While some professors post practical content like financial advice on platforms like Bilibili, there’s little discourse about major global events or broader philosophical insights.
13. When speaking with Chinese venture capitalists in AI labs, Patel was surprised to learn they felt constrained by limited capital.
14. The tech industry is still reeling from the 2021 government crackdown.
15. Keeping money in China means navigating a series of poor investment options.
16. Even if you build (or invest in) something great, there’s no guarantee the company can secure its next funding round. Even if successful, the government could arbitrarily cancel an IPO.
17. The real scarcity in life isn’t time but focus.

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Dwarkesh Patel 去年底花了两周时间在中国旅行，记录了一些有趣的见闻：

1. 中国基本上与美国存在相反的问题。美国补贴需求并限制供应。中国补贴供应并限制需求；
2. 即使在中国农村，许多人也住在大楼里，而不是自己的独栋房子里；
3. 政府建筑遵循相同的模式：巨大的建筑物被极宽的林荫大道分隔。这种布局似乎部分是为了社会控制而设计的；
4. 中国确实到处都是摄像头。这听起来可能很幼稚——但我真的不明白为什么。这里没有犯罪。我知道你会说这是为了防止抗议；
5. 就像学校枪击事件在媒体上频繁出现，但你实际上不太可能亲身遇到，对中国共产党的抗议也是如此。你极不可能偶然遇到它们；
6. 他交谈的几乎每个人都承认经济不好，许多人都指责政府的决策；
7. 他与一家非常成功的社交媒体初创公司的CEO聊过。他说，一些最受欢迎的账号在发布关于女权主义和其他看似自由的话题。他还说，只要这些内容不直接批评政权或任何特定的政治领导人，他从未不得不将它们下架；
8. 明确来说，这是一个威权体制，他当然会对自己在那里所做的事情感到不舒服，但它绝对不是朝鲜；
9. 他仍然困惑于中国如何同时面临人口崩溃和大量的青年失业问题；
10. 他在那里听到的一个解释是，虽然有很多低级工作可供选择，但如今受过高中和大学教育的年轻人，不愿意从事他们的父母和祖父母曾做过的低技能职位；
11. 真正缺乏的是那些实际上与他们的教育和抱负相匹配的高技能工作。可用工作与年轻人感到自己有资格且愿意从事的工作之间存在不匹配
12. 他感觉这种流行的知识生态系统在那里根本不存在。当然，有些教授在哔哩哔哩上发布的关于如何管理财务等实用事项的病毒视频。但对于世界上发生了什么以及我们应该如何应对的宏大见解？没什么可说的；
13. 与AI实验室的中国风投人士交谈时，最大的惊讶是他们感到资本受到限制；
14. 科技业对2021年的打压感到相当震惊；
15. 如果你把钱留在中国，你基本上只能在糟糕的选择中徘徊；
16. 即使你建立（或投资）了伟大的东西，也无法保证公司能够筹集到下一轮资金。即便你再次筹集成功，政府也可能随机取消你的IPO；
17. 生活中缺乏的不是时间，而是专注。

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