Traditional corporate culture and rigid hierarchies are slowing artificial intelligence adoption within Chinese enterprises, leaving them trailing their US peers. This occurs even as China’s tech-savvy consumers are rapidly embracing AI agents, according to Zack Kass, former head of go-to-market at OpenAI.
Kass, who served at OpenAI from 2021 to 2023, highlighted a contrast between the two nations. He noted that China has a "techno-centric consumer" while the US possesses a "techno-centric enterprise." Kass now operates his own consultancy after OpenAI launched ChatGPT in Nov. 2022 during his tenure.
Chinese consumers are generally more tech-savvy than their American counterparts, showing keen enthusiasm for emerging innovations. Kass attributes this positive relationship with technology to its role in lifting the country out of poverty, and also building the nation’s middle class.
In contrast, American consumers are more cynical about technology and big tech, Kass stated, citing anxieties over social media’s impact on children and declining public trust. This cultural divergence helps explain the frenzy surrounding OpenClaw in China, even as it struggles for similar scale and popularity in the US.
Last month, approximately 1,000 people gathered at Tencent’s Shenzhen headquarters, seeking free OpenClaw installations. Local social media platforms were simultaneously flooded with services charging up to several hundred yuan to install the AI agent.
The OpenClaw craze also sparked a buying frenzy on mainland Chinese stock markets. It drove up prices of Apple’s Mac Mini across China, as the device is considered ideal for running OpenClaw and other AI agents due to its affordable price and robust performance.
Kass observed that American enterprises are adopting AI agents more quickly than Chinese firms, actively rewarding talented developers. He criticised Chinese enterprises for not rapidly adopting AI, pointing to conservative, highly hierarchical corporate cultures.
These cultures rely on rigid, top-down decision-making, leaving middle managers without the influence needed to drive technological change. Kass believes this structure impedes swift AI integration.
China’s advantage, however, lies in its ability to centralise strategic efforts and consistently produce affordable innovations. While the US relies on decentralised, free-market experimentation, China has "centralised its attempt to build infrastructure," Kass explained.
The US and China are locked in a fierce AI race, with the US dominating high-end proprietary models. In response to US export controls on advanced chips, Chinese developers have pioneered low-cost, open-source alternatives.
Both countries are pouring billions of dollars into chip development and expanding AI data centres. This recognises that advanced computing power forms the foundation of technological dominance.
Kass noted that China has a unique ability to "drive down the cost of goods and services" for consumers, a progress and efficiency often unnoticed in the US. Geopolitical friction and a lack of first-hand experience have left Silicon Valley largely in the dark regarding Chinese AI.
American tech professionals rarely visit China, and major US firms generally block popular Chinese models like Kimi from Moonshot AI or DeepSeek. Kass said this results in a lack of hands-on understanding of China’s capabilities, leading to reliance on abstract benchmarks.
By contrast, Kass believes China maintains a much firmer grasp of Silicon Valley’s developments. Despite geopolitical narratives, he said the cultural parallels between the two countries are frequently overlooked. Kass pointed to a shared appetite for rapid development and consumerism.
He added that there are "a ton of similarities culturally" between the two nations, stating that the dynamic is "totally misunderstood."
Chinese enterprises lag US peers in AI adoption due to conservative corporate cultures.
Chinese consumers are highly tech-savvy and enthusiastically embrace AI innovations like OpenClaw.
US consumers are more cynical about technology, while US enterprises adopt AI more rapidly.
Source: SCMP
