Shenzhen is handing out millions in subsidies to push OpenClaw innovation, while the neighboring banks are being told to uninstall OpenClaw. State-owned banks and government agencies have been notified not to install OpenClaw, and those who already have it need to report and might have to delete it. On the same day, several cities are still giving out subsidies to encourage companies to use OpenClaw for projects. One foot on the gas, one foot on the brake. And the result? MiniMax’s stock price shot up 640% in just two months after going public, with a market cap of $49 billion, surpassing Baidu. MIT Technology Review’s data is even crazier—China’s total downloads of open-source AI models have already surpassed the U.S., and Alibaba’s Qwen has outpaced Meta’s Llama in cumulative downloads. So here’s the situation: the public is hyped to the point of being #1 globally, while the authorities are so nervous they’re issuing bans. If you’re doing AI in China, you’ve probably gotten used to this feeling. Hot and cold at the same time