A decade of Sixth Tone

a-decade-of-sixth-tone

The Big Switch

SPECIAL PROJECTS

China is producing EVs at an unprecedented scale, reshaping industries, economies, and daily life. Sixth Tone unpacks what’s working, what’s breaking down, and what’s next in a race that’s upending the global auto market.

Factory Reset: A New Generation Races to Save China’s Family Businesses

Articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants.

FEATURES

Across China, family-run factories are passing to a new generation on an unprecedented scale. Can they overcome e-commerce challenges, rising costs, and family pressures to reshape their businesses for the future?

He Qitong

Room to Grow: Shanghai’s Housing Solution for Migrant Workers

Visual stories that get up close and personal with contemporary China. A mix of short videos, documentaries, photography, and data visualization.

MULTIMEDIA

A new housing project aims to provide affordable living spaces across the city for low- and middle-income residents. Encompassing 188 distinct projects across various neighborhoods so far, the initiative plans to increase the total rental units to over 600,000 by 2025.

Wu Huiyuan 

Across China, an Unseen Rural Workforce Is Shaping the Future of AI

Data labeling jobs in rural areas are empowering women and the marginalized while also aiding poverty alleviation. But as advanced AI begins to eclipse traditional methods, the future demand for such human-driven jobs faces uncertainty.

Li Xin

In Taobao Villages, Merchants Say They’re Struggling with Livestreaming

As live-streaming disrupts China’s e-commerce landscape, gaps between urban and rural sellers may be getting wider.

Wu Peiyue

A Woman Called ‘Hey’

Thirty-five years ago, a Bouyei ethnic minority member was trafficked across China to a faraway village where nobody spoke her language. This year, she miraculously found her way home.

Zhang Yue

The Telescope at the End of the Universe

On a lonely mountaintop in southwestern China, a small group of engineers is quietly seeking answers to life’s ultimate questions.

Ye Ruolin

One Belt, One Road, One Abacus

How Shanghai’s math prowess is being exported to the world.

Ni Dandan

Meet the No-Name Models Wearing 500 Dresses a Day

Showroom models embody fast fashion in China’s crowded wholesale markets.

Chen Ronghui

Waking Up to the Threat of Domestic Violence

Abuse at home is a brutal reality for millions in China. A new law aims to bring about change.