The WSJ reports that China is on an extensive push to drive out Western tech companies from the country and replace them with domestic alternatives. China reportedly started its domestic expansion in 2022 with a highly secretive “Document 79,” an initiative focused on deleting Western tech companies from the country. Since then, China’s new plan has been in full effect — domestic alternatives have replaced most Western software providers.
When initiated two years ago, Document 79 was a super sensitive document that only high-ranking officials were purportedly shown. Security was so paramount that copies of the document were not allowed to be made. The initiative set out by Document 79 is to replace foreign software in China’s IT systems by 2027, with state-owned firms required to provide quarterly updates on their progress in replacing foreign software with domestic alternatives.
Two years later, the fruits of Document 79 are now apparent. Microsoft, HP Enterprise, and Cisco’s market share in China has fallen drastically in the past several years. In 2018, HP Enterprise had a 14.1% market share in China, but in 2023, that has fallen to just 4%. Cisco’s market share has halved in the past five years down to just 8%. Microsoft’s Chinese sales today account for just 1.5% of the company’s overall sales.
You’re attributing a lot of things to perfect execution without acknowledging the missteps and shortcomings of their approach.
The biggest in my mind is the domestic economic speedrun they’re ending too quickly. China has gone from cheap low tech manufacturing for the world markets to high tech affordable partner to the world markets (which is the sweet spot), to now contracting to serve only a domestic market.
They blew through the sweet spot in about 15 years where other countries sit there for 50 to 100 years. During those 50 to 100 years, you raise the standard of living for your populace, bring literacy and education levels to modern levels, stabilize your population replacement rate, and most importantly let your populace generate generational wealth. What this means is they robbed multiple generations of the benefits in a speedrun to late stage capitalism. They skipped social reforms, worker protections, environmental protections, and banking regulations. They didn’t have a long run of the good years in the sweet spot to absorb the turmoil that comes from learning these lessons an enacting reforms that the populace accept.
We’re seeing the results of this already with China’s 996 working hour system…
“The 996 working hour system (Chinese: 996工作制) is a work schedule practiced illegally by some companies in China. It derives its name from its requirement that employees work from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm, 6 days per week; i.e. 72 hours per week, 12 hours per day.” source
…the “lying flat” demotivated youth because they don’t see a path to getting ahead…
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“Tang ping means choosing to “lie down flat and get over the beatings” via a low-desire, more indifferent attitude towards life.”
…and China’s dangerous population decline
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“China’s population drops for second year, with record low birth rate”
Students of history, specifically China’s history have seen this before. Historically China was regional power that thought they had everything they needed from the outside world and saw the outside as a negative not worth interacting with. They built the Great Wall to keep out the rest of the world emerging years later to find they were passed by as the world evolved without them.
If your narrative is correct, I’m shocked to that China seems to be making the same mistake again. The repeated success of large nations has been engagement with the outside world with trade. If you’re right, China doesn’t agree with that to their detriment.