Sharp China Podcast

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall.

Show Notes:

On today's show Andrew and Bill talk through 360 degrees of President Trump's trip to Beijing this week. Topics include: Jensen Huang hitching a ride in Alaska, general expectations for deliverables after limited leaks and hurried advance planning, Trump's reception in Beijing, and the limits of "upper hand" analysis. From there: A coterie of billionaire CEOs make the trip with Trump, a US Chamber of Commerce/Rhodium report warning about the PRC's industrial strategy, and Trump makes overtures about "opening" China. At the end: Questions on Taiwan arm sales and AI cooperation, the expected talks on Ezra Jin and Jimmy Lai, a trillion dollar investment report that went viral eight months later, Xi's calculus before a 21st Party Congress, the Iran question looming over the week's meetings, and big, fat hug speculation.

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Related Readings:

Trump China visit; China’s Next Generation Industrial Policy; Standardizing and developing AI agents; No more deflation?; Ding Xuexiang visits Huawei -- Sinocism

Jensen Huang hitching a ride -- Emily Goodin on X

A weakened Trump arrives at Xi’s court -- FT

Trump on Opening China -- Truth Social

Trump is taking more than a dozen U.S. executives to China. Jensen Huang isn’t one of them -- CNBC

China expanding its industrial dominance, warns US business group -- FT

China’s Next-Generation Industrial Policy -- Rhodium

Donald Trump demands Xi Jinping ‘open’ China to US business -- FT

Xi Is Poised to Press Trump on Arms Sales to Taiwan -- NYT

U.S. and China Pursue Guardrails to Stop AI Rivalry From Spiraling Into Crisis -- WSJ

Families of two Americans jailed in China urge Trump to seek their release -- Reuters

Jimmy Lai is not forgotten as Trump goes to China -- WaPo

US-China Relations Cannot Return to the Past, But Can Have a Better Future—On the Occasion of the China-US Heads of State Meeting—— - Guo Jiping -- People’s Daily (Sinocism Translation)

Is Trump About to Invite In the Biggest Predator in the World? -- NYT

Team Chyyyyyna -- Lara Trump on X

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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sinocism.com/subscribe

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Show Notes:

On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the news that the Meta-Manus deal will likely be unwound in its entirety in the wake of a ruling from the NDRC on Monday. Topics include: The legal grounding cited by Beijing, reports that Manus failed to seek regulatory approval prior to its relocation and acquisition, Mark Zuckerberg as the photo negative of Tim Cook, Beijing’s signal to the AI ecosystem, and why fears of chilled innovation may be slightly overstated. Then: Takeaways from April’s Politburo assessing the economy after Q1, including a nod to the Iran war, no signs of stimulus, and why cracking down on involution is easier said than done. At the end: The MSS argues that foreign forces are driving the “lying flat” campaign, while the U.S. quietly applies pressure on a variety of fronts in advance of May’s meeting between President Trump and Xi Jinping.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com

Show Notes:

On today's show Andrew and Bill return to discuss the PRC's posture amidst the ongoing war in Iran. Topics include: Xi's call to re-open the Strait of Hormuz, an interdicted Iranian ship that may have been carrying missile precursors from China, Trump's posture toward China three weeks before his summit in Beijing, March export numbers, and …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com

Show Notes:

On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with the tentative ceasefire in Iran and reports that the PRC applied pressure to the Iranians to defuse the tensions. Topics include: The lack of clarity on what the PRC actually did and why, China's vote at the UN this week, why the PRC would like the war to end sooner rather than later, and relationsh…

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall.

Show Notes:

On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with thoughts on China's response to the war in Iran, including a peace plan co-authored with Pakistan, why the PRC is not necessarily interested in global leadership, how China sees a deepening U.S. rift with NATO countries, and President Trump's visit to Beijing rescheduled for May 14th. From there: Context for the KMT Chair's visit to China later this month, reactions to a Reuters report on Huawei's latest AI chips, while the Financial Times reports that both Manus co-founders have been banned from leaving China. At the end: ZXMOTO steals the show at the World Superbike Championship and Zhang Xue introduces himself to the world.

You can listen to the podcast in the app:

Or click here for instructions to add the podcast to your preferred player.

To subscribe to Sinocism, click here.

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And if you enjoy this podcast please share it far and wide:

Related Readings:

China-Pakistan Iran peace initiative; PBoC monetary committee meeting; US-China; ZXMOTO; Taxes wanted -- Sinocism

KMT Chairwoman to visit China; Li Qiang on Xiong’an; March Politburo meeting; Beijing bans drones; WDO, SAMR on involution -- Sinocism

China, Pakistan Issue Joint Call for Peace, Reopening Hormuz -- Bloomberg

A brief history of China’s X-point plans for the Middle East -- China-Mena Newsletter

Will China be the real winner from the Iran war? -- The Economist

A blueprint for Chinese global leadership -- Financial Times

Secret Codes and Yuan Fees Get Ships Through Iran’s Hormuz Tollbooth -- Bloomberg

Chinese analysis on the war in Iran -- China Mena Newsletter

Trump plans May visit to China for talks with Xi after Iran war delay -- Reuters

Trump-Xi summit: US trade chief casts doubt on pre-meeting Beijing visit -- SCMP

Taiwan’s opposition leader to visit China next month, ahead of Trump -- Reuters

Exclusive: Huawei’s new AI chip finds favour with ByteDance, Alibaba which plan to place orders, sources say -- Reuters

China reviews $2bn Manus sale to Meta as founders barred from leaving country -- Financial Times

Chinese startup ZXMOTO wins big at superbike championship -- China Daily

From Repair Shop to World Podium: Chinese Biker Goes Viral After Historic Win -- Sixth Tone

To add the Sharp China feed to your preferred podcast player:

Click on the “listen on” button and you will see a dropdown with several options. Make sure you are logged into your account when you do it so you get the correct private RSS feed for subscribers. If you have not logged in for a while you can enter your email and then we will send you a login link.

The “email link” in the pulldown shown above will send you an email that also makes it easy to set it up in your preferred podcast app on your phone.

If you use the Substack app it has a built- in podcast player.

Thanks for listening.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sinocism.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com

Show Notes:

On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with last week's indictment of Wally Liaw, the co-founder of Super Micro, and its implications for US chip policy. Topics include: Incredible details from the indictment, US enforcement options, and bipartisan calls for government action on Nvidia exports to China and Southeast Asia. Then: Xi takes three Standing Committee members and three other Politburo members to inspect the progress at Xiong'an, signaling continued commitment to the "new area" 60 miles south of Beijing. At the end: Reports that the US visit to China is delayed indefinitely, the PRC's delicate diplomatic calculus as the Iran war continues, and tech news on Manus, Apple, OpenClaw, and an FCC ban on routers.

Related Readings:

Xi inspects Xiong’an; China Development Forum; Iran; Nvidia chip smuggling; SOE rules; Sleeping fish -- Sinocism

Wang Yi speaks with Iranian counterpart; Japan-China; Router ban; Hong Kong bookstore owner arrested; Poyang Lake dam -- Sinocism

Three Charged with Conspiring to Unlawfully Divert Cutting Edge U.S. Artificial Intelligence Technology to China -- DOJ

US must suspend Nvidia AI chip exports to China, senators say -- Financial Times

China acquired recently banned Nvidia chips in Super Micro, Dell servers, tenders show -- Reuters

A Mystery C.E.O. and Billions in Sales: Is China Buying Banned Nvidia Chips? -- NYT

The Big Hack: How China Used a Tiny Chip to Infiltrate U.S. Companies -- Bloomberg

Feng Shui: between spirituality and state legitimation -- Sinocities

从风水角度看雄安新区背后玄机，关乎千年国运！- 新浪财经

重磅！雄安新区“风水格局”首次曝光，中轴线竟然对着……

Trump-Xi summit on hold until Iran conflict ends, people briefed say -- Politico

Chinese Founder of Router-Maker TP-Link Seeks a Trump Gold Card -- Bloomberg

FCC Bans Wireless Router Imports, Citing Security Concerns -- Bloomberg

China Ramps Up Scrutiny of a Meta A.I. Deal -- NYT

US-China; PRC-Vietnam; H200s; China cuts the “Apple tax”; Chinese Modernization and 15th Five-Year Plan -- Sinocism

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com

Show Notes:

On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the news that President Trump has postponed his visit to Beijing amid the war in Iran, including why a delay made sense for both sides, a “Board of Trade” proposal amid signs of stability in Paris, and the uncertainty that pervades on both sides as the war in Iran continues. From there: Reactions to…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com

Show Notes:

On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with the frenzy surrounding OpenClaw in China, including Beijing's response, security concerns, liability questions, an object lesson in the Chinese market, and why Tencent looks like a potential winner as regulatory issues are sorted in the months to come. From there: Reports that Beijing is unhappy wit…

This episode of Sharp China is outside the paywall.

Show Notes:

On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the war in Iran and its implications for the PRC. Topics include: Upsides and downsides for China, why US strategy was likely related to Iran and not the PRC, questions about the Strait of Hormuz, the Iran partnership and PRC global leadership, implications for Taiwan, why a Beijing visit from Donald Trump remains likely, and yet another US war in the Middle East… From there: What to watch for at the Two Sessions this week, an exodus at Alibaba, waiting for a new DeepSeek model, and distillation alarm at American AI labs. At the end: Another spy scandal engulfs Labour in the UK, and fun facts about Spider-Man: No Way Home and its failure to clear $2 billion worldwide.

You can listen to the podcast in the app:

Or click here for instructions to add the podcast to your preferred player.

To subscribe to Sinocism, click here.

To subscribe to Stratechery, click here.

And if you enjoy this podcast please share it far and wide:

Related Readings:

Reactions to the US-Israel attack on Iran; Prepping for the Two Sessions; Science and technology insurance -- Sinocism

Reactions to Iran war; US-China; Two Sessions; DeepSeek and Qwen -- Sinocism

China Calls on All Sides to Protect Ships Transiting Hormuz -- Bloomberg

What’s behind China’s careful response to its ally Iran after US-Israel strikes? -- SCMP

Taiwan Arms Sale Approved by Congress Is Delayed as Trump Plans Visit to Beijing -- NYT

Inside the plan to kill Ali Khamenei -- FT

What to Watch at China’s Two Sessions in 2026 -- Center for China Analysis

Alibaba AI Whiz Who Warned of US-China Tech Gap Steps Down -- Bloomberg

DeepSeek to release long-awaited AI model in new challenge to US rivals -- FT

Detecting and preventing distillation attacks -- Anthropic

Exclusive: China’s DeepSeek trained AI model on Nvidia’s best chip despite US ban, official says

Husband of Labour MP among three arrested on suspicion of spying for China -- The Guardian

To add the Sharp China feed to your preferred podcast player:

Click on the “listen on” button and you will see a dropdown with several options. Make sure you are logged into your account when you do it so you get the correct private RSS feed for subscribers. If you have not logged in for a while you can enter your email and then we will send you a login link.

The “email link” in the pulldown shown above will send you an email that also makes it easy to set it up in your preferred podcast app on your phone.

If you use the Substack app it has a built- in podcast player.

Thanks for listening.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sinocism.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit sinocism.com

Show Notes:

On today’s show Andrew and Bill begin with the reports that the PRC is threatening to scuttle Trump’s visit to Beijing over a second arms package from the U.S. to Taiwan, including thoughts on next moves from the U.S., how this arms shipment happened, and the PLA’s dangerous aerial maneuvers around Taiwan. From there: Reactions to the news that Jimmy Lai has been sentenced to 20 years in Hong Kong prison, a State Council white paper on “One Country Two Systems,” and Sanae Takaichi’s party secures a supermajority in Japan three months after the PRC’s pressure campaign over her Taiwan comments. At the end: The propaganda value of AI models, and a word about hockey and the Winter Olympics.

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Related Readings:

Jimmy Lai sentenced; Xi on Sci-tech self-reliance; Japan elections; US-China; Nanjing Museum case; AI propaganda -- Sinocism

Xi’s Beijing inspection; Li on rare earths; Hong Kong white paper; Taiwan Affairs Work Conference; PBoC report -- Sinocism

China warns US arms sales to Taiwan could threaten Trump visit in April -- FT

China steps up dangerous air encounters near Taiwan -- FT

China critic and former media tycoon Jimmy Lai is sentenced to 20 years in a Hong Kong security case -- AP

Exclusive | China rallies neighbours against Japan in rare meeting. Will it work? -- SCMP

UK, UN and EU deplore ‘monumental injustice’ of Jimmy Lai’s 20-year jail sentence -- The Guardian

Japan’s Leader Wins in a Landslide, Clearing Way for Hard-Line Agenda -- NYT

How Japan’s Leader Rescued Her Party from the Abyss -- NYT

Tokens of AI Bias -- China Media Project

Chinese artificial intelligence distorts perceptions -- Estonian Foreign Intelligence Service

Activist father of U.S. Olympian Alysa Liu targeted by Chinese spy ring -- AP

Who is Alysa Liu, Team USA’s alt-girl figure skater who just won an Olympic gold medal? -- Yahoo! Sports