Good evening. If you’re familiar with iFlytek, it is likely because the U.S. sanctioned the Chinese AI company for contributing to Uyghur surveillance in Xinjiang. But as our cover story this week shows, iFlytek’s core business is actually education, and it’s now a leading player in Beijing’s plan to radically reimagine China’s education system. Elsewhere, we have infographics on China’s electric bus market, which is eyeing overseas expansion; an interview with Rahm Emanuel on why he likes to send tweets trolling Beijing; an opinion piece from Yuen Yuen Ang that examines China’s crony-capitalist boom; and an op-ed from Yu Yongding about what the China pessimists are getting wrong. If you’re not already a paid subscriber to The Wire, please sign up here.
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Teacher’s Pet
The story of Beijing’s crackdown on the private tutoring industry has been dominated by the spectacular fall of once lucrative companies like New Oriental. But less appreciated is the companies that have prospered in the policy’s wake — like iFlytek, the artificial intelligence company. Beijing, it turns out, didn’t just ban private tutoring, it replaced it with AI. Matt Dagher-Margosian and Eliot Chen report on the radical reimagining of China’s education system.
The Big Picture: The Bus Bust-up
China’s rapid switch to electric vehicles is capturing global attention, but what may be less well known is how much of the change has been driven by public transport — especially buses. This week’s infographics by Aaron Mc Nicholas look at Yutong, an industry leader that is eyeing overseas markets.
A Q&A with Rahm Emanuel
Rahm Emanuel is America’s version of a wolf-warrior. The U.S. ambassador to Japan has made it part of his mission to mock the foibles, missteps and hypocrisies of Xi Jinping, the Chinese government and the Chinese Communist Party. Pugnaciousness — and political smarts — have long been Emanuel’s calling card. He was a senior adviser to President Clinton, chief of staff to President Obama, an Illinois congressman, and a Chicago mayor before shipping out to Japan. As ambassador, he has helped elevate the role of Japan in Washington policy circles. In this week’s Q&A with Bob Davis — part of our series ‘Rules of Engagement’ — he talks about seeing China as a strategic adversary.
Rahm Emanuel
Illustration by Kate Copeland
How Exceptional Is China’s Crony-Capitalist Boom?
In both the U.S. and China, Yuen Yuen Ang argues, corruption has evolved over time from thuggery and theft to more sophisticated exchanges of power and profit.
What the China Pessimists Are Getting Wrong
China, argues Yu Yongding, is probably in a much better position than the pessimists claim, with critics misinterpreting data like consumption expenditure, homeownership and savings rates.
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