adam najberg

Head of Communications at Tencent Games Global. Views expressed in tweets are mine, not my company's. Never were, never will be.

[Mitch Presnick 柏力 @mitchpresnick]

Much of the West’s commentary about China is produced at 40,000 feet.

Business in China actually operates on the ground.

Policy is interpreted, negotiated, and adapted across provinces, firms, and regulators in a highly dynamic system.

For anyone making real business decisions, the difference between those two perspectives is enormous.

Most China commentators’ exposure is primarily policy, theory, or non-resident observation.

Neither romanticizing China nor caricaturing it helps. Understanding how the system actually works does.

That’s why voices like Adam Najberg matter.

Formerly @WSJ, @AlibabaGroup, @TencentGlobal, and @DJIGlobal, Adam earned his China credentials the right way—decades of mainly on-the-ground experience across multiple disciplines. In his case, journalism first, then business.

Worth reading his thoughtful post below. 🦉

Original post from @adamnajberg on LinkedIn:

“I've spent 30 years in and around China. I covered the student protests in 1988 and 1989. My relationship with the Chinese government has never been comfortable.

So I'm not a China apologist. But I'm also not someone who thinks the story is simple.

I find it surprising when I scroll LinkedIn and see former US government officials, think tank fellows, academics and advisory firm partners confidently explaining what's happening in China and claiming the sky's about to fall there.

Their views have value. I read them. But there's a difference between 40,000-feet analysis and on-the-ground business reality. Between the letter of CCP policy and how lawyers, provincial officials and businesspeople are actually interpreting it and acting on it today.

If you're making business decisions, you need to know which one you're buying. Are you getting history, context and bias - or the latest intelligence? They aren't the same thing.

I'm not selling anything here. This is just free thoughts from someone who has spent time on both sides of the equation - as a journalist covering China, and the last 10 years inside three of its biggest tech companies.

China's government is authoritarian. It's also not monolithic. Policy isn't handed down from on high and followed robotically.

It gets interpreted, pushed back on, worked around. And the government - whatever you think of it - understands that speed matters.

China is hyper-competitive. It moves at blazing speed.

We cut off its access to advanced chips and the country bootstrapped its way forward anyway.

IP theft is a serious concern and needs to be stopped. But American exceptionalists love to treat it as the only explanation for how China develops technology. It isn't.

If you've spent real time in China recently, you would never say there's no innovation there. It makes you sound out of touch.

American roads are full of potholes. Our auto industry has been creaky for decades. We still stick cards into readers at the checkout counter and write paper checks. China leads the world in EV production. BYD sells more cars than Tesla. Hell, it sold more overall CARS than Ford did last year.

Meanwhile Chinese trains go from Shanghai to Beijing - 1,315 miles - in 4.5 hours at an average 215mph. Boston to DC is 450 miles and takes 6 hours.

That's not propaganda. That's a normal Monday.

I'm not a shill for Chinese tech. But I remember how confidently American pundits predicted Japan's implosion. Japan is doing just fine, decades later.

Before you pay for anyone's China advice, ask: When were they last actually there? Do they have real business experience or just policy exposure? Are they helping you make a decision - or just confirming one you've already made?

Their bias isn't the real problem. Not realizing they have one is.”

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

Amazing news! Out of Reach: The Struggle for the American Dream was just selected by East Village New York Film Festival via https://t.co/cjvJOG06m6!

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

Hey @ONEChampionship why on earth would you cut off the free #ONE172 YouTube link you had up when you're POV, Website, app & customer service failure was still a thing. Boss Chatri, you had this. You food the right thing. And then you blew it again. #owngoal

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

What a disappointment and failure from @ONEChampionship - took our money for the ONE 172, then everything crashed. No login, no access via Web or app, customer service was bots or helpless people. No solutions. You had one job. You failed. From a big fan

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

@ESPNPlusHelp Please get someone on your phone or refund me my UFC 313 entire cost. I cannot access the content. I keep getting error messages, content not available or my account needs an upgrade. Incorrect. Refund.

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

This is how @washingtonpost handled a previous ("pay-for-play") ethical dilemma after it was discovered by @politico
Newspaper Apologizes for Seeming to Sell Access https://t.co/PAhojUDHKu

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

@ESPNFANSUPPORT I wrote you yesterday to say I'm unable to access my online account for espn+. why hasn't anyone replied? you offer zero live help on your site, I pay a monthly subscription, why are you not offering any assistance? Please advise soonest or refund my subscription.

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

@ESPNFANSUPPORT why am i suddenly unable to access any espn+ content? i'm able to log in, i believe i have a valid subscription, but i keep getting player error messages telling me to upgrade my subscription. I need some human help, please. thanks.

[Napoleon Biggs @webwednesday]

Tonight, in Bangkok, we're talking th future of gaming and Chinese tech companies with @adamnajberg at WebWedsBKK. If in town, come join us. Details and registration here: https://t.co/dgkX2OUQ6R

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

@radiogrego Reach out if you need help. Keep the faith.

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

@Mad_Science_Guy When was this?

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

Do you remember when you joined Twitter? I do! Actually, I don't. #elonmuskmademedoit #MyTwitterAnniversary

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

.@ExpansysAsia what is wrong with you? 7 days, no reply to emails, no shipment. customer service fail. when an item is listed "in stock" and u say u process in 1-2 days, this is unacceptable. Cancel my order & write me acknowledging. Will not do business with you again.

[Bamboo Works @WorksBamboo]

Bamboo Works Weekly: https://t.co/nF3ErS6pm2 Falls Back on Logistics in Southeast Asia After E-commerce Defeat - https://t.co/ecW7GgpeGA

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

@ExpansysAsia what is wrong with you 7 days, no reply to emails. Customer service fail. When an item is listed as in stock and you claim you'll process in 1-2 days, and don't, then don't reply to emails, you lose business, like you've just lost mine. Cancel my order and write me.

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

@eldsjal We watched the Playlist. We know you will win.

[Andrew Kaczynski @KFILE]

Deleted tweet from Jim Jordan.

[LightSpeed Studios @__lightspeed___]

Our first Unreal Engine 5 game is coming! 👀 Code: To Jin Yong is adapted from the acclaimed series of martial arts novels by famed novelist Jin Yong. Code: To Jin Yong will be released to global players in the near future! Check out the full demo at https://t.co/H7adzxJ4nb

[Yaqiu Wang 王亚秋 @Yaqiu]

A woman in Tangshan got horribly beaten by a group of men after she rejected their harassment in a restaurant. She and the chained woman exemplify the precarious living condition for women in China, about which the seemingly omnipotent govt has little interest in addressing.

[adam najberg @adamnajberg]

Shame on you @SAirlines for stranding me and my wife in Minneapolis, ruining a graduation experience and family reunion. Still stuck here in MSP
You guys have offered NO HELP. You take NO responsibility #FAIL