China’s Innovation and Global Investment: My Remarks at the China Daily CEO Roundtable — Tianjin, October 2026
On 30 October 2026, I joined China Daily's “CEO: Grow with China” roundtable in Tianjin to discuss innovation, investment and opportunities in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region. Organised by China Daily and the Publicity Department of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee, the event brought together business leaders, academics and local representatives to consider the region's development during the 15th Five-Year Plan.
I joined Teo Eng Cheong, CEO of Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Investment and Development Co., Ltd.; Gianni Di Giovanni, President of the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce; Claus Zieler, Global Chief Business & Medical Officer at Astellas; Andries de Bock, Managing Director of Leybold Equipment (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. and General Manager at Atlas Copco Group; and Dr. Jianhui Gou, Chairman of Flender China. The discussion offered an opportunity to connect the experiences of multinational businesses in China with the challenges Chinese firms face as they expand overseas.
My prepared remarks began with China's changing role in global innovation. In electric vehicles, batteries and energy storage, China has become a place where products are developed and brought to scale, and where international firms increasingly look for know-how as well as customers. For Tianjin, the opportunity is to connect the region's research capabilities with manufacturing, testing and access to markets.
A central theme was trust. Commercial success abroad depends on more than the cost and performance of a product. Governments also want to understand who controls it, how data is handled and whether supplies can be relied upon in a crisis. Drawing on my experience at Huawei, I discussed the value of independent testing, transparent governance and substantive local partnerships. Firms can do much to address these concerns, but their efforts have limits when relations between governments deteriorate.
I also returned to the importance of predictable rules. Investors need to know what is required of them, have time to adjust when requirements change, and be confident that rules will be applied consistently. Opening markets is more valuable when businesses can plan around commitments that endure.
Looking ahead, I argued for a shift from market entry to market contribution. Chinese firms expanding overseas need to understand what host countries are trying to achieve, whether that means developing local suppliers, training workers, building industrial capacity or meeting energy and climate goals. The strongest partnerships will be those that can demonstrate a contribution to these priorities. That is a question at the centre of my work at Market Access X.
Watch an excerpt
This short clip is from my contribution to the roundtable.