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China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

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Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#122
post #96
post #72

IP isn't enforced there, technology companies are comprimised from the start, "failure" isn't seen as a stepping stone to success, basic personal freedoms for its citizens don't exist. Hm, wonder why smart people with plenty of options wouldn't want to live under a totalitarian government like that.

no startups have actual enforceable patents in the usa too. it's not like they have a research department or a huge legal fund. they may get the occasional design or method patent that means nothing in the real world. so i don't thin the China ip thing means anything for startups, other than know you won't be the target of a troll right off the bat.

At least there is precedent of making big companies pay a licensing fee for "borrowing" IP from a startup in the US.

Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#123

For people from Russia or other countries China could be attractive option. Take-home money can be good, especially with low taxation. US is not really a competition, it is relatively unfriendly to foreigners, very hard to move there. But I think China wants to mainly increase talent retention. There are many Chinese who stay in US after finishing their studies there. China wants those educated people back.

> US is not really a competition, it is relatively unfriendly to foreigners, very hard to move there. Which is why the immigration volume into the USA is more than 10 times greater than China? > There are many Chinese who stay in US after finishing their studies there. China wants those educated people back. Sure China wants those people back, but those people want to avoid the smog and are rather happy with the publ…

If you want to go abroad for couple of years to make some money, before returning home and starting a family, china is a good option.

Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#124
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Correct The problem would be much smaller if they used a non-tonal language with a manageable alphabet or abjad (like Cyrillic or Arabic)

Cyrillic is not an abjad as far as I know. I'm a native of a country that uses Cyrillic, but it's possible that I misunderstood the meaning of "abjad".

An abjad is an alphabet of consonants eg Arabic, Hebrew, Syriac. Cyrillic alphabets have vowels.

Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#125

I believe the author should have explored another reason: English. One of the legacies of the British Empire is that a lot of the educated people in the world use English. Even in Europe, it is the lingua franca for business and academia. (In mighty Germany, the top institutions publish in English). I think the applications and work would have to be done in English for China to effectively attract global talent.

If US attracts talent and they are all speak English, what reason you think that China cannot attract talent who are going to speak Chinese?

There are a few reasons:

1. You are usually effective and comfortable in the language you were educated in.

2. If you want to do business with a person in another language, you usually both default to English because it is usually second language if it is not their first.

I mean look at your own situation. I assume that you are fairly well educated (on Hacker News, decent grammar, and asked a good question). Suppose you had to leave the US, where would you go?

Your top choices might be other English speaking countries (Ireland, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand).

Your next set of choices would be places you could do business in English (Berlin perhaps).

Globally, a lot more educated people know English than Chinese. Its not impossible but it is a far larger barrier to entry than, say, blocking youTube.

Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#126

The article is avoiding the elephant in the room: the lack of openness and information access is merely a consequence of having an illegitimate regime where everything is ruled by coercion, corruption, and political connections. While you're there, if some company dumps chemicals in your backyard, somebody with a badge hounds you, or your employer refuses to pay you, good luck getting your day in court. They'd be doi…

What's striking about this description is that a number of would-be Western leaders seem to be looking at the situation and saying, "Wow, that looks great. I want my own."

Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#127
post #12

One cultural factor is the fact that developers have a low social standing in China (sometimes referred to as 马工). This leads to low pay, reduced dating pool, lack of respect from people you meet etc.

> developers have a low social standing in China But that's almost everywhere. As an example....I'm an ex-Silicon valley developer, but I am currently living in the Southeast USA and developers are scarcely understood or appreciated here, either. I must always be measured when I introduce myself, only mentioning my managerial responsibilities when I can tell the person does not understand what I actually do. The othe…

> "management of other people" is a key determinant of social status in some places

That's because control of other people is the primary status marker in much of the US.

Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#128
post #26

For people from Russia or other countries China could be attractive option. Take-home money can be good, especially with low taxation. US is not really a competition, it is relatively unfriendly to foreigners, very hard to move there. But I think China wants to mainly increase talent retention. There are many Chinese who stay in US after finishing their studies there. China wants those educated people back.

I guess it depends on your idea of "unfriendly to foreigners". If you're referring to countries where the US has icy relations with, getting a visa might be problematic, otherwise, I think your experience is a bit off. As a native born American, I see a surprising amount of small business owners who are successful are not from America. Even in the small town (Nicholasville, KY population ~20,000) I'm from, most of th…

It is very hard to get green card or work visa in US, compared to other countries. I am a white guy from EU.

Re: China won't be luring foreign tech talent any time soon

#130
post #83
post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The american administration is bad too for foreigners, so I think it can be summarized by how attractive the country is.

You mean how the child of an immigrant is President?

His father was not an immigrant, he was born in Queens. And the immigration laws are a much bigger obstacle now than they were even in the 80s.
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