What a year it's been! To all our amazing listeners, thank you for joining us on this wild ride through 2025. Ever wonder who else is tuning into ASCENT with you? Or what company totally blew Linda & Pan away this year? We've got all that and more packed into our special holiday episode!

Building ASCENT has been an incredible journey, and your support has been the fuel. We couldn't have done it without you.

Now, we're gearing up for Season 2, and we want YOU to help us make it epic. Hit the link in our show notes to fill out the form to help us shape Season 2 of ASCENT!

Happy holidays, everyone! Let's get into the show.

🙋 Help shape Season 2 of ASCENT! 2-Minute Form Here

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📖 Episode Chapters

00:01:01 Seven Companies of 2025: Insta360, DeepSeek, Red Bull, Xiaomi EV, Pop Mart, Game Science, ANTA

00:04:51 Numbers Reveal! Where are Our Listeners - Top Cities & Top Countries

00:13:56 “Company of the Year” - Linda’s Pick & Pan’s Pick

00:24:48 “Things That Should’ve Been Included in the Episodes But Oops We Forgot” - Linda’s Pick & Pan’s Pick

When you think of the biggest names in sportswear, who comes to mind? Nike, right? The undisputed king. And Adidas, the eternal number two. For decades, that’s been the story. A two-horse race.But what if I told you there’s a third giant? A company that, in just the last few years, has quietly become the third-largest sportswear brand in the world, with a market value that’s now neck-and-neck with Adidas.

And what if I told you that you probably own something made by this company, but have no idea? Ever worn a pair of FILA sneakers? Played tennis with a Wilson racket? Gone skiing with Salomon boots? Or maybe you’ve coveted one of those high-end Arc’teryx jackets? All of those iconic brands… are owned by the same company. A company you’ve likely never heard of: Anta Sports.

In this episode, we will discover how Anta Sports rose from a rural Chinese workshop to become the world’s third-largest sportswear empire, challenging giants like Nike and Adidas. We will uncover founder Ding Shizhong’s high-stakes strategies: surviving the post-Olympic inventory crisis with a radical Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) pivot and transforming FILA into a fashion powerhouse. Finally, we dissect the audacious "Snake Swallows Elephant" acquisition of Amer Sports (Arc'teryx, Salomon, Wilson), revealing the financial engineering behind Anta's multi-brand global dominance.

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📖 Episode Chapters

00:02:16 Anta's Humble Origins and Ding's Beijing Hustle

00:23:19 The Prince of Gymnastics vs. The Underdog

00:34:49 Pivoting to the NBA: Conquering Basketball

00:50:00 The Inventory Hangover: Surviving the Post-Olympic Crash

01:03:47 The Fila Bargain: Buying a "Dead" Asset

01:24:17 Snake Swallows Elephant: The Amer Sports Acquisition

01:46:20 Potential Future for Anta: Opportunities and Risks

This episode dives into the inspiring journey of Game Science, the Chinese studio that defied industry giants with their global hit, Black Myth: Wukong. Discover how disillusioned Tencent veterans Feng Ji and Yang Qi bet everything on a single-player, PC-only game rooted in Chinese mythology. We trace their decade-long quest from compromise to triumph, exploring the creative philosophy, financial risks, and artistic passion behind a game that sold millions in days. This is the story of proving a small studio could conquer the global stage and redefine what's possible for Chinese game developers. A must-listen for gamers and entrepreneurs alike.

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📖 Episode Chapters

00:01:02 Intro

00:01:59 CEO Feng Ji’s Journey from Science Major to Game Junkie

00:11:26 The Artistic Talent Behind Wukong: Yang Qi

00:18:10 Source Material: Journey to the West and the Game's Backstory

00:30:47 The Predecessor: Lessons Learned from the Tencent Asura Project

00:38:42 Game Science is Born: Survival and Compromise

00:47:55 Building a Myth: The Six-Year Grind of Black Myth: Wukong

01:04:45 The Hype After the Trailer: Game Science's Response to Media and Investment

01:31:14 What's Next? Zhong Kui, Expectations, and the Future of Game Science