This episode, I talk with Zixuan Li at Z.ai, one of China's top AI labs and the company behind the popular GLM models. Zixuan is Z.ai's Director of Product for genAI strategy and global partnerships. We discuss Z.ai's newest flagship AI model, the challenges of building agentic AI models, and what their longer AI strategy looks like.

00:00 Intro to Zixuan Li of Z.ai

00:29 GLM-5.1, Z.ai's Newest Flagship Model

04:34 Long Horizon Tasks

08:33 GLM Family of Foundation Models

14:30 Challenges in Developing Agentic AI Models

19:37 Working with Chinese AI Chipmakers

22:53 Open Source vs. Proprietary Models

36:49 Life After IPO and Chasing AGI

41:37 Z.ai's Global Strategy

Links:

• Z.ai
• GLM-5.1: Towards Long-Horizon Tasks
• Zixuan on X/Twitter

For transcripts and more, check out the High Capacity newsletter.

Rui Ma, founder of Tech Buzz China, explains the real sources of China's tech strengths and where the US still has the advantage. From industrial parks to capital markets, we talk about how to understand China's tech landscape at a deeper level -- and why so many people are eager to tour Chinese factories.Links:

• Tech Buzz China
• Tech Buzz China newsletter
• Rui Ma on X / Twitter

For transcripts and more, check out the High Capacity newsletter

Tom Wang, Hugging Face's head of APAC ecosystem, joins me to talk about the latest wave of Chinese AI models, how China's AI open source ecosystem works, the rise of AI agents and OpenClaw in China, and more.Links:- Tom Wang on Twitter / X- Tom Wang on Hugging FaceFor transcripts and more, check out the High Capacity newsletter

From DeepSeek to Kimi, China's open-source AI models have gotten all the attention. But open source has a much longer history in China, according to Kevin Xu, former head of global expansion strategy at GitHub. Kevin takes us on a journey through China's open source evolution, from its grassroots beginnings to its central role today in China's AI strategy. We also get into the current OpenClaw craze in China and why Chinese tech firms seem to be jumping in faster than their American peers.

00:00 Intro to Kevin Xu

04:21 Early days of Chinese open source

16:11 1024 Programmers' Day and 996.ICU

27:33 Huawei enters the game

41:57 DeepSeek moment

51:17 China's OpenClaw frenzy

56:40 Will China keep doing open-source?

Links:

• Chinese Open Source: A Definitive History
• Kevin Xu's Interconnected newsletter
• Interconnected Capital
• Kevin Xu on Twitter / X

For transcripts and more, check out the High Capacity newsletter

What's China's tech culture really like? Are there billionaire tech founders? Are they worshipped like they are in the US? What inspires Chinese tech entrepreneurs?00:00 Intro to Afra Wang00:33 What is Chinese tech culture?09:04 China's 4 tech generations20:25 China's tech founders and the government25:42 China's tech canon44:12 Chinese sci-fi and tech culture50:43 Chinese ideas of industrial powerLinks:- Concurrent newsletter: https://afraw.substack.com/- Afra's professional website: https://afra.work/- Wired: You've Never Heard of China's Greatest Sci-Fi Novel: https://www.wired.com/story/china-sci-fi-morning-star-lingao/- Asterisk: The China Tech Canon: https://asteriskmag.com/issues/12-books/the-china-tech-canon- Afra on Twitter / X: https://x.com/afrazhaowangTranscripts and more on the High Capacity newsletter: https://www.highcapacity.org/

A deep dive into China's robotaxi and autonomous driving industry. What are the big trends? Who are the major players? LiDAR vs. camera-only? How good are Chinese robotaxis? Where are they going next? I'm joined by China EV and AV expert Lei Xing in this episode of the High Capacity podcast.

00:00 Intro to Lei Xing

01:06 Smart driving vs. autonomous driving

06:37 Chinese government policy for autonomous vehicles

13:44 What's it like to ride a Chinese robotaxi?

19:29 China's different robotaxi strategies

29:30 Huawei as a major player

35:11 AI and autonomous driving in China

41:25 Semiconductor chips and smart driving

47:21 Shifting geopolitical landscape

53:40 Commercial trucking and delivery robots

Follow Lei Xing:

• Twitter / X

• LinkedIn

• YouTube

• China EVs & More podcast

For transcripts and more episodes, check out the High Capacity newsletter.

China's top AI players like Alibaba, ByteDance, and Moonshot are pursuing different strategies. China AI expert Grace Shao joins me on the High Capacity podcast to talk about the most important trends in China's AI landscape: agentic AI, ecosystem integration, raising capital, and navigating geopolitics.

00:00 Intro to Grace Shao

03:51 Agentic AI in China

17:42 The popularity of ByteDance's Doubao app

23:11 China's AI tigers

28:42 Shifts in China's AI strategy

34:32 Meta's acquisition of Manus

40:43 Singapore as a geopolitical gateway for AI

50:12 Future trends in China's AI industry

Links:

• AI Proem newsletter
• Differentiated Understanding podcast
• High Capacity newsletter

Chinese EVs are transforming the global auto industry. Tu Le, founder and Managing Director of Sino Auto Insights, joins me on the High Capacity podcast to talk about what's happening with Chinese EVs: technology and features, global expansion, new approaches to manufacturing, hybrids, and robotaxis.00:00 Introduction to Tu Le00:56 Cool Technology in Chinese EVs05:16 Chinese EVs at CES in Las Vegas07:18 Geely's Ambitious Plans for the US Market09:50 Who are the Major Chinese EV Players?17:07 Are EVs like Consumer Electronics?25:16 Manufacturing Changes in the Auto Industry29:05 Overcapacity and Chinese EVs31:43 Overcapacity and Global Implications37:33 Partnering with Chinese EV Makers44:12 The Future of Hybrids and the EV Transition50:18 The Rise of Robotaxis and Autonomous Driving

Links:

• Sino Auto Insights
• SAI Newsletter
• China EVs & More podcast
• At the Wheel podcast

Subscribe to the High Capacity podcast on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.

Read the High Capacity newsletter

Follow Kyle Chan on Twitter / X