China’s crackdown on Big Tech

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View this email in your browser  |   Manage newsletter subscriptions By Jennifer Conrad | 07.29.21 Good morning! I learned something this week: "People who created a to-do list fell asleep nine minutes faster, on average, than those who didn't." Too bad these lists—whether analog or digital—rarely make us more productive. I've also found a new thing to worry about: phantom warships that aren't really there—but could spark a war anyway. Happy Thursday!     China Cracks Down On Its Tech Giants. Sound Familiar? Over the past few weeks, barely a day has gone by without a new headline about China's sweeping crackdown on its tech companies. Most dramatically, the government launched an investigation into ride-hail company Didi Chuxing just days after its American IPO, causing its share price to tank. This week, I set out to explore what's behind the rapid-fire actions, which have ensnared everything from food-delivery apps to education startups. I found that there's a growing sense among Chinese officials that tech companies have become too big and powerful—and a need to realign the tech sector with China's long-term goals, which include shaking dependence on the West and pioneering in fields such as artificial intelligence. It's a bad time to be an investor in Chinese tech stocks or a Chinese tech CEO, but will the government's gamble ultimately pay off? Read what's behind China's tech crackdown.     Deep(er) Learning WIRED reporters have covered the phenomenal growth behind Chinese tech giants, and the challenges they've faced along the way. In 'Communist' China, Alibaba Is Training People to Shop Online In 2016, Davey Alba described Alibaba's efforts to get people in rural China to shop online. It's Not Just TikTok. Chinese Firms Face More US Roadblocks Last year, Will Knight and Tom Simonite looked at the increasingly fraught environment for Chinese tech companies in the US, as popular apps like TikTok and WeChat were seen by some in Washington as national security threats. Inside the Feds' Battle Against Huawei Last year, Garrett M. Graff looked at the US government's efforts to shut out Chinese smartphone maker Huawei.     Need to Know   There's so much productivity software out there—yet building the perfect system to effectively manage tasks might be impossible. Faked location data for warships is showing up on websites that monitor maritime traffic—and these phantom ships could cause chaos in conflict zones. Workers at Activision Blizzard, maker of games like World of Warcraft and Overwatch, staged a walkout on Wednesday to protest what they say is a culture of rampant sexism. President Biden's "antitrust revolution'' should extend to artificial intelligence, where a handful of companies have outsize influence. Clubhouse is now open to everyone—but just a few days after ditching its invite-only status, the audio chat app had fewer than 500,000 new downloads.       So, This Happened Disinformation-for-hire is a sprawling international industry, with networks of fake social media accounts and even influencers hired to push vaccine conspiracies. (The New York Times) IBM introduced Japan's first quantum computer for commercial use as the US and Japan work together to take on China in quantum computing. (Nikkei Asia) In response to major floods in China's Henan province, web users turned to spreadsheets and social media to crowdsource relief, and a state-owned drone maker is helping restore telecommunications. (Protocol) Instagram unveiled changes to its privacy policy to protect minors from unwanted contact and limit how advertisers can target them. (The New York Times) Lucasfilm hired a YouTuber named Shamook whose deepfake Mandalorian videos went viral. (Gizmodo)     Until Next Time   What do cities look like under a microscope? (Do you really want to know?)     Essential Reads Phantom Warships Are Courting Chaos in Conflict Zones Activision Blizzard Employees Walk Out After Allegations of Rampant Sexism Biden's 'Antitrust Revolution' Overlooks AI—at Americans' Peril Clubhouse Opens Its Doors. Is Anyone Rushing to Get In? GET WIRED Summer Sale! Ending Soon: Get WIRED for $10 $5. You can't see into the future, but you can subscribe to WIRED. Subscribe now.             This e-mail was sent to you by WIRED. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, wired@newsletters.wired.com, to your address book.   View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe or manage your newsletter subscriptions   Copyright © Condé Nast 2021. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.