Summary: Purpose: invite you to WIRED’s subscriber-only livestream, “Welcome to the Chinese Century,” on January 21 at noon ET / 9 am PT. This event argues a blunt point: whether you notice it or not, you are already living in the Chinese century. China is moving ahead across batteries, solar, electric vehicles, robotics, construction methods, and space programs. WIRED will unpack how that shift changes markets, politics, and culture — and give you a chance to ask hard questions live.
The claim: we’re living in the Chinese century — what that means
Say the words out loud: “Chinese century.” What do you picture? If your picture is trade tensions or geopolitics, you’re not wrong. If your picture is factories and hardware, you’re not wrong either. China’s scale in manufacturing and deployment is no longer hypothetical. It shows up in the cheapest and most widely deployed solar panels. It shows up in the largest battery factories and the most widely sold electric vehicles. It shows up in construction methods that can erect a building in a day and in robotics and AI development that are accelerating industry-wide automation.
Call it the Chinese century. Call it China pulling ahead in specific sectors. The phrase matters because it forces a simple question: if China is setting the pace in core parts of the global economy, where does that leave companies, regulators, and citizens elsewhere? What do we do next?
Where China leads — concrete examples, not slogans
Solar manufacturing: China produces the vast majority of photovoltaic cells and modules used worldwide. That’s not a slogan; it’s a manufacturing footprint that lowers costs and speeds deployment. Batteries: gigafactories scale and vertical supply chains have reduced unit costs for lithium-ion cells. Electric vehicles: Chinese brands and suppliers have aggressive domestic scale and export momentum. Robotics: factories are buying more industrial robots year after year, and Chinese companies are investing heavily in automation software and sensors. Space: China has built a permanent-orbit space station, returned lunar samples, and launched interplanetary missions that matter. Construction: modular, prefabricated techniques let companies build at speeds that once looked impossible.
Those facts add up to a competitive edge. That edge shows up in lower costs, faster rollouts, and the ability to set standards through scale. Scale makes standards. Standards shape markets.
Why this livestream matters for a practical audience
WIRED’s January China Issue isn’t an opinion piece. It assembles reporting on robotics, energy, culture, and the tech stack that moves today’s world. The livestream lets you hear journalists who track these changes daily explain what’s happening and why it matters. Sandra Upson will host; Zeyi Yang will bring field reporting on China’s tech and business moves; Will Knight will connect the dots in AI and the robotics surge. That’s a compact panel of people who read the signals so you don’t have to guess.
Want to understand risk? Want to find opportunity? Want to know whether your business model is fragile or resilient in the face of these shifts? This session will be raw with evidence, and there will be time for your questions.
What you’ll get out of the livestream — practical takeaways
You should expect concrete insights, not hype. Bring a pencil. Here’s what the session will cover and what you can expect to walk away with:
• A grounded read on manufacturing scale: where Chinese production reduces costs and where supply chains still carry risk.
• A technical look at energy: how solar and battery scale changes the economics of electricity and what that means for utilities and investors.
• A status check on robotics and AI: where automation will change labor needs and product cycles, and where human skills remain decisive.
• A cultural read: how Chinese media, platforms, and creative exports shift global tastes and influence markets for content and advertising.
• A sober view on geopolitics and policy: how governments and companies might respond, and where regulation can alter outcomes.
How to join, who can watch, and replay options
The livestream is for WIRED subscribers only. Bookmark the event page on WIRED’s site and return on January 21 at noon ET / 9 am PT. If you can’t make the live session, a replay will be posted for subscribers after the event ends. Not a subscriber yet? You can subscribe to WIRED to get access to the livestream and the full China Issue. The Made in China newsletter offers a weekly briefing on the biggest China tech stories, delivered every Thursday — sign up if you want the short, factual pulse in your inbox.
Questions worth bringing — start the conversation
If you want to get value from the session, prepare questions that force specifics. Open-ended questions work best. For example:
• What part of my sector is most exposed to China’s scale, and how fast could that exposure hit my margins?
• Where is China simply cheaper, and where does quality or regulation still favor non-Chinese suppliers?
• If China is leading in solar and batteries, how should energy planners rethink grid investments?
• How should firms balance the opportunity of Chinese markets with political and reputational risks at home?
Say “No” if you want to reject the premise outright. Say “No” and then tell us why. What would make you reject the idea that we’re already in the Chinese century? Your “No” is useful — it forces clarity. What makes you say “No”?
Empathy and trade-offs — an honest frame
Not everyone will welcome the facts. There are real anxieties: job loss, national security concerns, and cultural change. Those anxieties are legitimate. Equally legitimate are the hopes: cheaper clean energy, better tools, and new markets. We can both fear and pursue opportunity at once. How do we balance those impulses? That’s the practical question this livestream will press.
You might feel defensive reading claims about China’s gains. You might also feel curious. Both reactions are normal. Bring that curiosity and that skepticism into the room. Ask hard questions. Ask inconvenient ones. That’s how you get useful answers.
What WIRED brings to the table — credibility and invitation
WIRED is running a focused China Issue and a newsletter dedicated to Chinese tech reporting. That commitment provides a consistent feed of evidence and analysis. Zeyi Yang lives in the reporting beats on China’s tech and business shifts. Will Knight tracks AI’s cutting edge. Sandra Upson oversees features that tie technology to futures that matter. That combination is practical: boots-on-the-ground reporting paired with domain expertise in AI and tech trends.
Next steps — how to prepare and follow up
Bookmark the page. Subscribe if you want the replay and extra reporting. Sign up for the Made in China newsletter for weekly context. And bring questions that force the panel to choose specifics rather than talk in abstractions. Will your industry change in five years or in fifteen? Which parts can be adapted, and which are strategic bets? These are not rhetorical; they are operational. What do you want to be able to do after the livestream that you can’t do now?
Pause. Think about the sectors you care about and pick one clear question. That focused question will get a better answer than a broad complaint.
Closing thoughts
This livestream is an opportunity to hear focused reporting and to test assumptions. It will not hand you a simple prescription. It will give you evidence, trade-offs, and expert judgment. If you want to protect a business, invest wisely, or shape policy, understanding the facts is the first step. What will you do with those facts?
#ChineseCentury #WIREDLive #MadeInChina #ChinaTech #Solar #Batteries #EVs #Robotics #AI #ChinaSpace
Featured Image courtesy of Unsplash and blue sky (NkhrHeESfak)
