Kendra Schaefer, a partner at Beijing-based strategic advisory consultancy Trivium China, said China is essentially trying to build the market infrastructure needed for data to be treated like a tradable asset.
She pointed out that, unlike traditional assets such as land or capital, data still lacks mature systems to prove ownership, determine value and govern transactions.
“Data trading is actually quite experimental,” she said.
TURNING AMBITIONS INTO REALITY
Zetrix AI believes that ASEAN, a regional bloc comprising 700 million people with diverse languages, cultures and economies, could become more than just a consumer of technology.
“Ultimately, this positions ASEAN as a serious data hub, not just a consumer of technology,” Wong said.
For companies trying to enter new markets, WITO Technology’s Ng said cross-border data services could provide more grounded insights than traditional market research, with Chinese companies expanding into ASEAN among those seeking such information.
“When China wants to export products to ASEAN, they require a very, very comprehensive kind of analysis,” he said.
But turning that vision into reality remains complicated.
While China has experimented with cross-border data transactions, turning individual deals and partnerships into a broader international marketplace remains a work in progress.
SZDEX’s Ou said cooperation with Zetrix AI is still at an early stage.
The partnership currently focuses on product and channel cooperation, rather than the construction of a fully operational regional platform, he said.
“This is a commercial activity,” Ou said, adding that Zetrix had expressed interest in learning from Shenzhen’s experience.
“Building broader channels for data circulation will be a long process,” he said.
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