 19-Jun-18, Fortune 

Unlike Alphabet’s Google, Amazon and Facebook, which rely on overseas markets for a third or more of their total sales, Alibaba and Tencent collect only a small fraction of their revenue outside of China. But a different story is unfolding in Southeast Asia. 

Image: Fortune

Alibaba and Tencent have spent billions of dollars to secure major equity stakes in the region's leading tech startups. The region’s Internet economy - online media, travel, ride-hailing and e-commerce - will grow to USD200 bn by 2025, a fourfold increase over USD50 bn in 2017.

Investments from the two Chinese giants have stimulated growth and expansion, but have also forced changes in leadership and strategy. In essence, Alibaba and Tencent are creating rival tech ecosystems that mirror their competition in China, and are requiring local startups to choose sides.

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