China does what it does best and creates it’s own version of something that already exists

We all know about GPS. Not just what it stands for but also what its purpose is. I mean, it’s pretty straightforward. In case you didn’t though, GPS stands for global positioning system and it’s used to determine the ground position of an object, whether in real time or not. Now, here’s something you probably didn’t know: GPS satellites are actually US owned. Yup, Uncle Sam owns and operates the very navigation system that prevents you from ending up in some random ditch.

It’s with that little back story that this story is going to make a lot more sense.

So China has been working on an alternative to GPS for YEARS and it’s finally close to completion. The Beidou Navigation Satellite System is expected to reach orbit “before 2020” if project lead Ren Chengqi is to be believed. The project, which is actually in its third phase, is all set to make China’s reliance on the US made GPS satellite system all but obsolete.

The move makes even more sense given whats been going on with the recent US imposed trade ban on China. Similar to Russia’s GLONASS satellite system, China’s Beidou System will give the country the freedom of never really having to worry about the US disabling GPS access in the name of its political and military interests (Just ask the Indian military).

Things of this kind of scale work like clockwork in China and it’s hardly surprising that about 70% of Chinese smartphones already support Beidou, with 120 partners already lined up to use it for mapping technology. What is probably most exciting about it all is that Beidou will be available for global users come 2020, so it’ll be interesting to see just how China’s system matches up to GPS.

I can’t be the only one who has GPS issues whenever I find myself in KL’s “Golden Triangle” area and if China’s take on GPS works more efficiently in Southeast Asia, then why not, right? That being said though, I’ve never been a fan of China’s “F*** America” (more like the west in general,  democracy, everyone else) mentality, especially given how often China unironically knocks off American brands and products.

At this point I’m convinced that all these squabbles have become so ingrained in the DNAs of both nations that an all out peace between the two would surely result in something catastrophic. Like, who are they going to blame when shit goes down then, themselves? Fat chance.

The saga continues, I guess.