Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday presided over a meeting with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (阿里巴巴) cofounder Jack Ma (馬雲) and other prominent entrepreneurs, signaling Beijing’s endorsement for a long-marginalized private sector now considered key to reviving the world’s No. 2 economy.
The country’s leader drew many of the biggest names in Chinese business over the past decade, representing industries from chipmaking and electric vehicles (EVs) to artificial intelligence (AI). The summit demonstrated Beijing’s softer stance toward the private-sector companies that fuel most of the country’s economy, just as Washington ramps up a potentially debilitating campaign of global tariffs.
Xi delivered a speech after listening to representatives of firms including Ma, Meituan (美團) cofounder Wang Xing (王興) and Xiaomi Corp (小米) chief executive officer Lei Jun (雷軍), Chinese state media reported.
Photo: Florence Lo, Reuters
Also present were Unitree Robotics (宇樹) founder Wang Xingxing (王興興) and Huawei Technologies Co (華為) founder Ren Zhengfei (任正非) — considered key figures in China’s ambition to reduce its reliance on US technology.
Tencent Holdings Ltd (騰訊) founder Pony Ma (馬化騰) — whose WeChat pioneered the “super app” concept that has since been lauded by Elon Musk — attended, a person familiar with the meeting said.
BYD Co (比亞迪) founder Wang Chuanfu (王傳福) and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (寧德時代) founder Robin Zeng (曾毓群) also joined the assembly, driving home China’s rapid ascent in EVs.
“This is the strongest signal China could release to boost social confidence. The fact that Xi Jinping himself shows up to meet with the entrepreneurs highlights the political significance of this meeting,” Singapore University of Social Sciences School of Law senior lecturer You Chuanman (游傳滿) said.
Authorities have taken a less combative approach more recently as China’s economy slowed and companies aligned themselves with Xi’s push for leadership in areas such as AI.
Alibaba’s Qwen (通義千問) model has performed well in official benchmark tests and signaled the company’s growing relevance in the field, while Apple Inc is incorporating its AI technology into Chinese iPhones, a vote of confidence in its growing prowess in the field.
“It’s an enabling policy rather than a 180-degree shift,” You said. “China has been pivoting from over-regulation on the property market and private sector before COVID[-19] to releasing positive policy signals to the private economy. We’ve seen a continuing shift in tone from Beijing toward the private sector: tolerance, improvement and encouragement.”
It remains unclear to what extent authorities plan to shift their stance toward the private sector. A show of support by Xi would almost certainly add fuel to the stock-market rally and revive animal spirits among entrepreneurs, but much would depend on whether authorities follow through with more concrete policy actions.
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