• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
Commentary

Commentary: How China Became a Digital Leader

By
Jonathan Woetzel
Jonathan Woetzel
,
Jeongmin Seong
Jeongmin Seong
,
Kevin Wei Wang
Kevin Wei Wang
, and
Bethany Cianciolo
Bethany Cianciolo
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jonathan Woetzel
Jonathan Woetzel
,
Jeongmin Seong
Jeongmin Seong
,
Kevin Wei Wang
Kevin Wei Wang
, and
Bethany Cianciolo
Bethany Cianciolo
Down Arrow Button Icon
December 5, 2017, 4:55 PM ET
2017 Fortune Global Forum - Preview
GUANGZHOU, CHINA - DECEMBER 04: A flower bed is set at the Central Business District (CBD) to welcome the 2017 Fortune Global Forum on December 4, 2017 in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province of China. The 2017 Fortune Global Forum will be held on Dec 6-8 in Guangzhou. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)VCG via Getty Images

As CEOs gather for the Fortune Global Forum in Guangzhou, China this week, the most intense buzz is around China’s role in technological change and innovation. China is already shaping the global digital landscape, and there is much more to come.

China already leads the world in digitization of consumer-facing industries such as e-commerce. It has the largest e-commerce market in the world, accounting for over 40% of worldwide e-commerce transactions, and boasts 11 times the value of mobile payments as the United States, according to McKinsey Global Institute.

But innovation is now spreading. China is a major worldwide investor in cutting-edge technologies. It is a global top-three venture capital investor in virtual reality, autonomous vehicles, 3D printing, robotics, drones, and artificial intelligence (AI). One in three of the world’s unicorns is Chinese. “Made in China” business models such as “dockless” bicycle sharing and video social networking are spreading around the world.

A new wave of transformation is now unfolding as more businesses in China put digital technologies at the heart of their operations and strategy. Three types of digitization are propelling change: disintermediation—when digital solutions enable companies to cut out the middleman and serve consumers directly; disaggregation—when large items such as properties and cars are broken up and repackaged as services; and dematerialization—when physical objects are turned into virtual ones, as we have seen in music and publishing.

New research from the McKinsey Global Institute finds that these digital forces can potentially shift and create 10% to 45% of industry revenue in China by 2030. This is creative destruction on a grand scale that can root out inefficiency and vault China’s economy to new levels of global competitiveness.

The research examined four sectors. In consumer and retail, China is now building on its success in e-commerce with moves into “omnichannel,” or blended offline and online models, as well as data gathering. Between 13% and 34% of the industry’s revenue could shift or be newly created. In the automotive and mobility sector, up to 30% of industry revenue could be impacted by omnichannel models, connected cars, and ride-sharing. The impact of digitization on health care could be the largest of all sectors—up to 45% of health care expenditure—if the full potential of the Internet of Things, AI, and big data is tapped to offer remote diagnostics solutions for patients with chronic disease, for instance, or to reduce waste in the health care system, like fraud and over-treatment. In China’s fragmented and inefficient freight and logistics sector—consider that 95% of China’s 8 million trucking companies are one-man operations or small companies—digital platforms that can match demand and supply in real time and crowdsourcing delivery can have a huge impact of as much as one-third of the industry’s revenue.

We are optimistic that China will tap this potential. Companies can commercialize digital models rapidly and at scale because of China’s huge, relatively young, and digitally savvy home consumer market. In 2016, China had 731 million Internet users, more than the European Union and the United States combined. Nearly one in five Internet users in China relies on mobile only, compared with just 5% in the United States, according to McKinsey.

China has a dynamic and rapidly expanding digital ecosystem. In 2016, three digital giants—Alibaba, Baidu, and Tencent—provided 42% of domestic venture capital investment in China, a far more prominent role than Facebook (FB), Amazon (AMZN), Netflix (NFLX), and Google (GOOG) that together contributed only 5% of U.S. venture capital investment in that year. Large traditional companies including telecommunications equipment business Huawei and insurer Ping An are now moving decisively into digital and developing their own ecosystems.

 

China also has the inestimable advantage of government support for digitization. The government is an active consumer of, and investor in, digital technologies, aiming explicitly for an AI applications market of more than 100 billion renminbi ($15 billion) value by next year, investing in what is envisioned to be the world’s largest 5G mobile network in the next seven years, and backing the development of quantum technology, which could lead to the world’s safest and fastest Internet.

China has already achieved world-beating success in digital technologies that serve consumers, and is now moving into a new era of digitization in industry. All the factors are in place for China to set the digital frontier for the world in coming decades.

Jonathan Woetzel is a senior partner of McKinsey & Company based in Shanghai, and a director of the McKinsey Global Institute where Jeongmin Seong is a senior fellow. Kevin Wei Wang is a McKinsey senior partner based in Hong Kong.

About the Authors
By Jonathan Woetzel
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Jeongmin Seong
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Kevin Wei Wang
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Bethany Cianciolo
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Commentary

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Commentary

David Bennahum
CommentaryMedia
I was one of the internet’s first influencers. AI just killed the whole category — and created something better
By David S. BennahumMay 24, 2026
18 hours ago
employees
CommentarySuccession
Millions of business owners are about to retire. They should sell to their employees
By Matt Helmer and Maxwell JohnsonMay 23, 2026
2 days ago
Ashley Yetman
Commentarydisruption
Everyone is blaming AI for the death of ‘craft.’ Take a good look in the mirror
By Ashley YetmanMay 23, 2026
2 days ago
clay
CommentaryLoneliness
I’ve spent 25 years studying loneliness. AI is about to make it much worse
By Clay RoutledgeMay 23, 2026
2 days ago
ambrose
CommentaryRobotics
Former NASA Robotics Chief: America is building the wrong kind of robots — and China knows it
By Robert AmbroseMay 23, 2026
2 days ago
morris
CommentaryEntrepreneurship
My startup hit $200 million ARR. But first I walked away from 2.5 million YouTube subscribers and nearly went bankrupt
By Joel MorrisMay 23, 2026
2 days ago

Most Popular

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
4 days ago
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
Lifestyle
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
By Sasha RogelbergMay 24, 2026
16 hours ago
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
Success
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
By Emma BurleighMay 22, 2026
2 days ago
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
Real Estate
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
By Sydney LakeMay 24, 2026
17 hours ago
Apple’s Steve Wozniak says he cofounded the tech giant after 5 rejections from HP—not to ‘make money.’ For years, his paycheck was just $50
Success
Apple’s Steve Wozniak says he cofounded the tech giant after 5 rejections from HP—not to ‘make money.’ For years, his paycheck was just $50
By Preston ForeMay 22, 2026
3 days ago
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
5 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.