Involution, No Revolution: Technocapitalism and Intern Labour

Abstract

The global economic downturn due to the pandemic has resulted in shrinking the digital market in big economies such as the USA and China. After the pandemic, many of the major tech and internet-based companies had to take action to reverse their declining balance sheets and look for ways to financially rebound. Illustrated in this paper is how these tech firms in China could further advance their economy by minimising their paid manpower by working with/under the education system and inventing new temporary intern positions as semi-(im)material labour to expand their workforce. Based on our ethnographic work and interviews with interns, we elucidate the case of a Chinese tech intern, which exemplifies what we refer to as involution. Involution is a process by which the new generation is induced to accept a much more precarious economy as a result of nominal pay, yet can nevertheless survive, meet their daily needs and dwell in big cities, rather than engaging a radical change or revolution.