End of ‘unbridled growth’ for China’s tech firms, podcast founder says

China has implemented a series of crackdowns this year against monopolistic practices and unfair competition among the country’s tech firms. For instance, tech titan Alibaba and food delivery giant Meituan were slapped with fines following antitrust probes.

International media reports have followed the narrative of China taking extreme steps to keep tech heavyweights in check. But Rui Ma, founder of podcast Tech Buzz China‘s offers a different view.

Speaking at this year’s Tech in Asia Conference, she said the Chinese government was just putting a stop to the unregulated growth that local tech firms have enjoyed for nearly two decades.

“The age of unbridled growth has come to an end. There is going to be more regulation, and some normalization with international norms,” explained Ma.

“While the government would call it ‘barbaric growth,’ I would just call it growth that is less regulated,” she added. “What we are seeing now is a push towards more structured and stable growth.”

Rui Ma, founder of Tech Buzz China / Source: Tech Buzz China

It all began with the suspension of Ant Group’s blockbuster US$37 billion initial public offering last November, forcing the company to modify its asset-light business into something more like a bank.

Since then, Chinese regulators have launched anti-monopoly probes into some of the country’s tech heavyweights, including Alibaba and Tencent. It has also mandated cybersecurity reviews for foreign listings – a measure that has created problems for ride-hailer Didi Chuxing.

Ma was an investment partner at 500 Startups and spent a decade in private equity and mergers and acquisitions roles at the Raine Group, Morgan Stanley, and Merrill Lynch in Silicon Valley and China. She also has 16 years of experience in tech and finance, spanning the seed funding stage to pre-IPO investing.

Drawing from her VC experience, Ma said that in the past, regulations in China were much lighter compared to those in the West. She added that there were also newer innovations in tech in China because there was no punishment for doing so.

China to take the lead in AI regulations

While some may argue that there are no norms in the evolving AI space, rules for large companies that operate out of China may serve as a template for other countries to follow, Ma noted.

The Chinese vision is becoming clearer, thanks to the country’s new regulations.

See also: China’s link-blocking ban: panacea or Pandora’s box?