★ Must Read🔮 Exponential View #572: AI’s moats, myths and moral loopholes
A senior analyst recently conducted on-the-ground meetings across China's AI ecosystem, interviewing teams at publicly listed foundation model companies (Zhipu, MiniMax) alongside major tech players including Alibaba, Xiaomi, and ByteDance. The visits provide direct access to competitive intelligence on Chinese AI development, technical capabilities, and strategic positioning across both specialized and diversified tech companies. This matters because China's foundation model companies are advancing rapidly with different architectural approaches and commercialization strategies than U.S. competitors, and firsthand assessment of their technical depth and market focus directly informs competitive positioning in the global AI race.