Another ‘Taobao’ moment helps China return to growth

[SINGAPORE] In recent years, a wave of Chinese creativity and technology has been influencing industries and capturing the imagination of the world.

Products such as Labubu, which kick-started an international frenzy for collectible toys, Ne Zha 2, which showcases China’s rapidly developing animation and film-production capabilities, and DeepSeek, which is revolutionising artificial intelligence (AI)-driven applications, are more than just business success stories. These ventures exemplify the strides that the country has made in innovation, as well as its growing influence in the global marketplace.

This phenomenon, though, is not new. Some have dubbed the emergence of DeepSeek as the “Sputnik moment” for AI, drawing parallels to the first man-made satellite launched by the former Soviet Union in 1957 that sparked an arms race with the US and the Cold War.