Automation is affecting everyone, including Chinese factory workers. AI: "job loss ≠ decline in industrial capability – a critical lesson for other developing economies." "At its peak, around 2010 (just before and after the global financial crisis), China’s manufacturing sector employed about 220 million people. ...Now, we’re down to about 100 million. So, over the past decade, ~100 million people have left manufacturing. Where did they go? Mainly into the service sector." -- Sun Zhongwei, South China Normal University Checked this with Zhipu GLM-4.5 AI - original quote seems correct. See below for more. China's manufacturing sector underwent a profound transformation during this period: MVA = Manufacturing Value Added Nominal MVA: +$2.79T (120% increase) PPP MVA: +$4.33T (89% increase) This reflects a successful shift from labor-intensive to capital-intensive, high-value manufacturing. While employment plummeted, productivity gains and technological upgrading turned China into an unrivaled manufacturing superpower. The data underscores that job loss ≠ decline in industrial capability – a critical lesson for other developing economies.