John Kaller | The Evolving KOL And Influencer Market In China & Unpacking The Future Of Artificial Intelligence

The Negotiation

Topics Discussed and Key Points:

● How changes in China’s economy and business landscape over the last four years influenced John’s work

● Challenges faced by foreign versus local Chinese startup entrepreneurs

● Potential advantages for foreign startup owners in China

● Changes in the education space in China

● The evolution KOLs and influencer marketing in China

● Problems that unpackAI aims to solve

● What AI is really capable of and how China is exploring these capabilities compared to America

Episode Summary:

Today on The Negotiation, we speak with John Kaller, a German entrepreneur based in China with an extensive background in AI Product Management.

John is the Co-Founder of unpackAI, an e-learning startup that makes AI and deep learning education as accessible as possible by offering affordable, virtual, and project-based bootcamps to business professionals.

He is also a Program Consultant for The Startup Yard, a global Think Tank that provides a pre-accelerator bootcamp for international budding entrepreneurs looking to kick-off their startup in China.

John volunteers his time as the Managing Director for The German Innovators in China (GINN), a nonprofit that seeks to build bridges between entrepreneurs and innovators from German-speaking countries and the innovation landscape in China.

Looking back over his four years in China so far, John has observed that “the market reorganizes itself” at a speed much faster than in Western markets. That is, in a few short years as an entrepreneur in China, John has seen trends come and go, and technological and logistical innovation is a regular occurrence. He also foresees a new wave of foreign entrepreneurs making their way into the China market in a post-COVID world.

On succeeding as a foreign startup entrepreneur in China, the biggest challenge is almost always navigating cultural barriers along with a lack of fluency in the language. But, as John says: “You’re not trying to be Chinese or trying to do ‘better’ than Chinese entrepreneurs.”

Rather, the key is for the foreign entrepreneur to position themselves as an expert in their particular industry and serve as a “gateway” into the global market for their local Chinese investors.

John also speaks on the progressive democratization and privatization of China’s education and influencer marketing spaces. Finally, he discusses the future capabilities of AI and the differences in how China innovates in this field compared to the U.S. and Canada.

Key Quotes:

“Especially in China, the moment you are able to speak the language, you are able to access such a wide field of people that you normally wouldn’t have access to because they simply don’t speak English.”

“Doing a startup is very, very difficult. However, the set of problems that a foreign startup owner encounters in China [versus that of] a Chinese startup owner in China are just different. They’re not worse or easier—they’re just different. As a foreign founder, you have to be able to still show yourself as an expert in a certain market while being in China, while maybe not being able to speak fluent Chinese [or encountering cultural barriers.]”

“Education in China is a huge topic because it’s seen as the lever for families to prepare their children for newfound wealth. [...] Education is a cornerstone in China. The willingness of families in China to spend and invest time and money into it is a lot higher than it is in the West.”

“KOLs and the influencer space are wildly different from the West’s. It’s a more evolved version. Why is that? It’s because people in China, especially the current generation, have grown up with technologies that were way more embedded in their normal life. Examples of that are payment, education, and social media. They are a lot more ingrained in the culture using digital and phones compared to the West.”

“Both the U.S. and Canada are far ahead when it comes to AI research. [...] These are published in papers and top journals that are widely accessible to anyone. However, the application of AI is mainly happening in China, where these techniques are actually being used and put into practice.”