[itmayno]

“ It's cracking down on private Internet companies that acquired too much power through network effects.”

Sounds like smashing to me. Smashing down on private companies and innovations. Smashing down on private wealth and power. Smashing down on freedom and growth. You can tell the dictator is getting desperate if he stops the train of innovation.

[mcguire]

That makes the assumption that "innovation" is consumer facing internet technology.

[itmayno]

Alibaba isn’t just consumer facing internet technologies, look up the vast b2b stuff it does. And other types of companies have been smashed as well like evergrande or Wanda.

Also, do you really think innovation will come from state companies? In that case, why didn’t 1980 China or 1980 Russia thrive?

[muyuu]

Chinese mandarins don't believe all innovation is the same, and they also believe some of it may be deallocating capital from industry that brings capital influx into the country.

It's totally consistent with their long term plans since the 90s or so.