China's narrative of national success is contradicted by a significant diaspora of its citizens—from millionaires and creatives to ordinary workers. This flight of human capital seeking stability and freedom abroad signals a fundamental precariousness within the authoritarian system that pure economic growth cannot solve.

Major Chinese tech companies like Kuaishou are actively downsizing and enforcing a 'curse of 35' by pushing out older employees, a practice codenamed 'Limestone'. This contrasts sharply with MAG7 US tech firms, which have consistently increased headcount over the same period, highlighting a major divergence in talent strategy and labor law.

China faces a severe labor market mismatch. Over the last five years, the number of university graduates grew by 40% to nearly 12 million. Simultaneously, the economy shed 20 million jobs, creating a surplus of educated youth with limited opportunities and suppressed wages.

China's aggressive adoption of AI and robotics has led to high youth unemployment alongside cheap, high-quality services. This scenario, sustained by family savings and cultural homogeneity, may offer a blueprint for how Western societies could function in a post-AI world with fewer traditional jobs.

While proclaiming AI will create jobs, tech giants like Google and Meta have seen profits soar while their employee counts have fallen from 2022 peaks. This data from AI's biggest adopters provides concrete evidence that fuels public skepticism and fears of widespread, technology-driven job losses.

While high-profile layoffs make headlines, the more widespread effect of AI is that companies are maintaining or reducing headcount through attrition rather than active firing. They are leveraging AI to grow their business without expanding their workforce, creating a challenging hiring environment for new entrants.

While official unemployment rates remain low, a wave of "invisible unemployment" is hitting tech. Companies are achieving growth with flat headcount by leveraging AI, leading to a quiet squeeze on entry-level roles, mid-level performers, and senior executives with outdated skills who are leaving the workforce without being replaced.

Layoffs at a leading AI company like Meta are not just a negative signal. They function as a healthy redistribution of talent. Engineers who don't meet Meta's extremely high bar are still elite performers who get quickly absorbed by other companies, accelerating innovation across the broader tech ecosystem.

In an industry where youth is prized and founders like Peter Thiel have expressed a bias against hiring older employees, male tech workers are increasingly turning to cosmetic surgery. Facelifts and eyelid surgeries are up significantly as professionals try to look younger to maintain their careers.