Growing up in the 80s in a then-communist country, then seeing the transition and following the development etc, it's obvious to me that ex-communist countries - China is different in many ways of course - lack the culture of appreciating individual talents and what they bring to the wider community and its future.
The always not only present but prevalent primitive way of thinking is that economy and wealth is a zero-sum game, a pie, and if one person or group has more that must mean that I, or we, have less. In the old USSR they had an expression - uravnilovka - (leveller?) meaning everyone at the same level. It only partially corresponds to the modesty of northern Europe or the southern European Catholic countries, and mostly means don't work, or especially think, more than is necessary not to be above anyone else.
That kind of culture is dramatically slowing down development. People go to university in a bandwagon kind of mentality, not because they want more, and also just to get the paper - diploma, not the actual knowledge. They want the same as everyone else, and later when they start working, they don't want to stick out, and fully expect someone else - the state - to take care of their career opportunities.
After waiting for decades for some positive change, I'm fully certain change will arrive only when the political elite is dominated by the new generation, AND the voters are majority new generation. So that's at least 10 more years in Central Europe. And obviously communists are still in power in China.
So although Americans for decades already like to promote that "we are somehow threatened by this or that" self reinforcing loop, I'm actually very sceptical that China is now somehow going to develop a creative culture just out of the blue. Just nope. In much the same way it was very obvious to me that Russia's army, although huge, was mostly a toilet paper...kitten, before it became obvious to even the smarter American ex-generals and the sort. The cultural difference is just so significant, and quantity doesn't replace quality.
That all said, Huawei and some other Chinese companies did develop some creative thinking, and that will perhaps be a hub for more creative developments, but not for China as a society or for all other industries.
And as a side note, Northwestern Europe, basically Belgium, Switzerland, Austria and upwards, don't really have youth unemployment, like ever. Kids get their first job usually around 16 or so, those who go to uni are very quickly employed afterwards, noone is getting their first job at 29, that just doesn't exist. For example, in Austria, if you work for 3 years, and then decide to go to uni, the state will subsidize you monthly. In Nordic countries it's similar, precisely because 19yo person can get a well paid job easily.
In Southern and Central Europe industries and general development levels are different though, then around the Mediterranean tourism is just gigantic, more agriculture etc. But engineers of all kinds find employment basically immediately after university everywhere in Europe, and programmers and IT specialists even during uni, which often makes it difficult for them to actually finish it.
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