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Entrepreneur. Previously HouseTrip (sold to TripAdvisor), now MeAndQi.com Subscribe if you like what I write

1k following391k followers

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The Thought Leader

Serial entrepreneur turned prolific commentator who turns obscure research and on-the-ground observations into viral, must-read threads. Sold HouseTrip to TripAdvisor and now leverages deep curiosity to spark conversations about tech, China, and geopolitics. Subscribe if you like what I write.

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🔥 Roast

You’ve sold a startup to TripAdvisor, but your tweet count proves the real exit was from restraint, at this rate, your archive will need its own investor deck. Also, congrats on treating X like a research paper server; I'm just waiting for the footnotes to get a footnote.

⚡️ Nice achievement

Built and exited HouseTrip to TripAdvisor, a major founder exit, and then parlayed that credibility into massive public influence, including threads that rack up millions of views and shape global conversations.

🌟 Life's purpose

To translate complex tech and geopolitical developments into clear, shareable insights that inform public debate, influence builders and policymakers, and connect curious minds across borders.

💬 Values and Beliefs

Values rigorous evidence, nuance, and cross-cultural curiosity; believes entrepreneurship and innovation can solve real problems but also that open debate and accountability are essential. Skeptical of easy narratives, he prizes facts, first-hand reporting, and provocative questions that push people to think harder.

💪 Strength

Outstanding at digging up primary sources, synthesizing complex topics into readable threads, and driving huge engagement; combines founder credibility with an authoritative, curious voice that people trust and amplify.

🫣 Weakness

Can be polarizing, strong takes invite backlash and heated replies; prolific tweeting sometimes dilutes signal and makes it hard for newcomers to find the very best content among the noise.

⚡️ Growth audience tips

Pin a few evergreen, multimedia threads (TL;DR + key links + visuals) so newcomers get your best work immediately. Use high-quality infographics and short video summaries to increase shareability, repurpose threads into a newsletter or Substack for deeper monetization, host regular Spaces/Q&As to convert followers into loyal subscribers, and collaborate with other thought leaders to tap adjacent audiences. Finally, add succinct TL;DRs to long threads so skimmers stick around.

💁 Bonus

Fun fact: Arnaud has 391,723 followers and has tweeted 44,962 times, and one of his threads about a Chinese bone-glue tech hit ~12.96 million views and 152k likes. He founded HouseTrip and sold it to TripAdvisor, then pivoted to becoming a high-impact writer and commentator.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Sep 29

Ok, I looked into this because sometimes claims that "China invents Y" can be somewhat exaggerated. But this is real, and completely insane. This technology called "Bone 02" (inspired by the well-known "502 glue" in China) has been developed for the past 9 years by a team of orthopedic surgeons in Zhejiang province. The team leads are Professor Fan Shunwu (范顺武, Director of the Orthopedics Department at Zhejiang University) and Lin Xianfeng (researchgate.net/profile/Xianfe…). It's inspired by oysters because the researchers noticed their extraordinary ability to firmly attach themselves in harsh underwater environment by secreting a special adhesive known as bio-cement, which creates a strong chemical interaction with surfaces and hardens quickly. The properties of the glue are almost miraculous (sources: news.cn/20250910/1df93… and news.ifeng.com/c/8mVMq4PBdmJ): - Nearly instant adhesion in blood-soaked wet physiological environments (it just takes 2-3 minutes) - Extremely strong adhesive properties (bonding tensile force of over 400 pounds - over 181 kg) - Complete biodegradability that naturally absorbs after about 6 months as the bone heals (no need for secondary surgery previously required in conventional treatments) - Vast reduction of infection risks related to the traditional metal plates and screws normally needed for bone surgery - Minimally invasive and rapid surgery since you just need a small opening large enough to apply the glue (as opposed to a complex surgery attaching metal fixations) This glue could be especially useful for fractures with small bone fragments which are very difficult to fix with metal plates and screws. The glue has already undergone a proper "prospective, multicenter, blinded, randomized, parallel-controlled, non-inferiority clinical trial" with over 150 patients (c.m.163.com/news/a/K95S9C0…). They've announced positive results - the glue "achieved seamless bonding of all fracture fragments" - and will soon publish the peer-reviewed paper in an orthopedics journal detailing full trial data. They've launched a company for the product called 源囊生物 (Yuannang Bio) which just raised 2 weeks ago RMB100 million in Series A financing (bydrug.pharmcube.com/news/detail/ef…).

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Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jul 15, 2024

Couldn't find a better illustration for why Zionism is not the same as Judaism...

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 26

Turns out that freedom of speech was when TikTok was Chinese.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 19

That's funny, walking around Chongqing you can now see "ishowspeed was here" signs in various restaurants 😊

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Nov 11, 2023

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think it's the first time in history we're witnessing a state not only murder UN workers on such a scale but actually tell the UN they deserved it, and scold THEM for criticizing the killings. I simply have no words.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Sep 18

Absolutely extraordinary exchange between Israel and China 👇 I've never seen such a heated exchange come out of top-level forum in China (this is from the 12th Beijing Xiangshan Forum that started yesterday), this normally never happens. The guy speaking is Yan Xuetong, the dean of the Institute of International Relations at Tsinghua University, the most prestigious university in China. Speaking for Israel is a military officer apparently called Elad Shoshan. Yan Xuetong truly doesn't hold back: - When the Israeli officer tries to bullshit him around how Israel supposedly protects civilians in Gaza, he replies: "You killed more than 70,000 civilians!... The fact is not decided by you... It is not decided by your government. Your government has no legitimacy or the right to decide or defend what is fact" - And when told that the war will end when Hamas release hostages he replies: "No, this kind of propaganda have too many. No one believe it! Too many! Too much! No one believe it, except a few Israelis"

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jun 13, 2024

These have undoubtedly been the wildest 72 hours in French politics in my lifetime. Pretty incredible stuff. A 🧵

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Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Mar 09, 2024

Malaysia asks for the abolition of the veto of the 5 permanent UN Security Council members, especially in the case of "situations involving mass atrocity crimes such as genocide" x.com/les_spectateur…

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jun 10

France is finally starting to wake up after Israel kidnapped French MEP Rima Hassan. They're shouting: "Gaza, Gaza, Paris est avec toi" ("Gaza, Paris is with you")

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 15, 2025

Oops, it's starting 😏

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Nov 15, 2023

There's something almost admirable about the consistency with which Germany always stands on the wrong side of history.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 14, 2024

Yup, turns out bombing the Houthis was yet another fantastically stupid idea.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 28, 2024

Whatever your position is, just take a moment to reflect on just how dark this is. Just hours after the ICJ concluded that Israel was plausibly committing genocide and ordered it to dramatically step up humanitarian efforts, 7 Western countries sanctioned... not Israel but the…

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 14, 2024

Wonderful example of Streisand effect: because mainstream media in the West by and large egregiously did not to cover South Africa's arguments against Israel at the ICJ, you now have actors of the most popular show in the world reading it out in a viral video!

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Feb 03, 2024

Israel shot and killed a 17 year old American citizen - Tawfiq Ajaq - in the West Bank a mere 2 weeks ago... 🤷‍♂️

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Mar 11

This is a huge story in China right now given how big an outcry the installation of this caused back in 2017: Chinese tourism to South Korea was stopped, the Lotte Group was essentially shut down in China (nearly all of Lotte Mart's 112 Chinese stores were closed down due to "fire safety issues"), Hyundai and Kia had to close factories, k-pop disappeared from Chinese media, etc. And now the US is just dismantling it to send it to the Middle-East... So, quite literally, to have this, South Korea endured tens of billions in economic damage and did enormous harm to its relationship with its neighbor and largest trading partner... only for the US to take it back whenever it suited them. The lesson writes itself.

Most engaged tweets of Arnaud Bertrand

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jul 27

If Europeans were paying attention (or being told the truth), they should be beyond appalled by this "deal": bbc.com/news/articles/… It's nothing more than one of the most expensive imperial tributes in history. Just a massive one-way transfer of wealth with no reciprocal benefits The "deal" is: - The EU now gets charged 15% tariffs on its exports to the US when they commit to charging zero tariffs on US imports in the EU - The EU agrees to invest $600 billion in the US, for no other obvious reason than pleasing "daddy" - The EU will "purchase hundreds of billions of dollars of American military equipment" - The EU commits to buying 750 billion dollars worth of very expensive US LNG, specifically $250 billion for each of the next 3 years In exchange for all these concessions and extraction of their wealth they get... nothing. I'm not even exaggerating, that IS the deal: the EU gets nothing. This does not even remotely ressemble the type of agreements made by two equal sovereign powers. It rather looks like the type of unequal treaties that colonial powers used to impose in the 19th century - except this time, Europe is on the receiving end. More worryingly, this sets a dynamic and a precedent: what do you think happens next from here? In the 19th century, were colonial powers content with their first unequal treaty? Of course not - one of the key rules of geopolitics is that weakness only encourages further exploitation. Again, this is Europe's century of humiliation.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · May 03, 2024

This is absolutely priceless. And probably the most frightening clip you'll ever watch on the people in charge of the US economy. Jared Bernstein is literally the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, the main agency advising Biden on economic policy

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Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · May 25, 2024

Incredible. US Speaker of the House: "we don't put any international body above our sovereignty" "International body above sovereignty" is the very definition of international law. So it's official: the US rejects the very concept of international law.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Sep 18

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Dec 11

Insanely, submitting your past 5 years' social media to enter the U.S. as a tourist is only a small part of the proposed upcoming requirements. You'll also need to give your DNA (!) among many other new requirements. All the additional info you'll need to give as a tourist…

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Nov 24, 2023

Almost 42% of children. Again: almost 42% of children!!! If that doesn't revulse you and convince you this has to stop NOW and forever, you have COMPLETELY lost the plot. It's unjustifiable and undefendable. Eternal shame on those who attempt to defend, enable or support this.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 16

This is the perhaps best illustration that Trump's new "Monroe doctrine" is objectively achieving the exact opposite of what it intends. https://t.co/nZpR1Ul0lv Carney is currently in Beijing describing a "new era of relations between Canada and China" and explicitly talking about both countries becoming "strategic partners" on a comprehensive range of issues, including "issues on security." There is no overstating how extraordinary this is to anyone who's followed Canada-China relations in the past few years. Canada was probably THE country globally most aligned with the U.S. when it comes to China. As a reminder they literally abducted the daughter of Huawei's founder on the U.S.'s behalf and held her hostage for years despite severe Chinese retaliation - all in service of Washington's containment strategy. So for all intents and purposes Canada used to actually embody the Monroe Doctrine in practice: they were all-in on the US! And now Trump has achieved the extraordinary feat of changing that calculus, impressing upon Canada that HE was the threat and that they needed to hedge their US exposure. I mean, imagine telling anyone during the Meng Wanzhou episode that 4 years later Canada would be in Beijing, asking them for a strategic partnership on security matters while America threatens to annex it 😅

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 31, 2024

I rarely praise the Guardian but this is a extraordinary visual investigation of the sheer level of destruction in Gaza: theguardian.com/world/ng-inter… Absolutely crystal clear when you look through it that the objective is to render the place utterly inhabitable, and destroy…

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jul 20, 2024

This is actually a very significant difference between India and China. Never would a Chinese billionaire dare have such an ostentatious wedding, because they understand how indecent it'd be and how badly it'd be perceived by pretty much everyone. And never would a senior party leader - let alone Xi - attend such an event as it'd immediately sound the death knell of their career. There are many extremely wealthy Chinese but wealth has to be discreet: if as a billionaire you were to start vulgarly flaunting your wealth or becoming too arrogant, it's a virtual certainty you'll quickly regret it. It's interestingly very similar to France: we too culturally despise wealthy people who show off and hold money as a value in and of itself. Maybe even more so than the Chinese actually (although, unlike in China, the wealthy hold a lot of sway over the French government). It's actually an interesting topic of study: why is it ok in some cultures to be so ostentatious (like India and the US) and not in others (China or France)?

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Nov 11, 2023

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Aug 13

This is, without exaggerating, one of the most extraordinary things a US Treasury Secretary ever said. It should be mandatory viewing for all citizens of US "allies", Europeans first and foremost. What Bessent is saying is that the US will now treat US allies' wealth as an American "sovereign wealth fund" (his words), "directing" them, "largely at the [US] president's discretion", how to use their money in order to build American factories and reshore American industries. Even the Fox News host can't believe it, calling it "offshore appropriation", another word for theft. That's exactly what it is: straight up unabashed colonial plunder. That's the pattern we see emerge: unable to extract wealth or win wars against an increasingly strong Global South, the US has turned inward to feast on its own "allies" - who can't resist precisely because they depend on their exploiter for military "protection". They're as defenseless against American wealth extraction as any 19th-century colony was against its colonial "protector." That's exactly what I wrote in my latest article on "Europe's colonial moment": open.substack.com/pub/arnaudbert…

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Dec 19, 2023

It is absolutely extraordinary to me that the US would rather 1) completely obliterate whatever remained of its moral standing in the world, 2) risk a regional conflict and 3) cause economic pain to itself and the world... rather than use its leverage to tell a very tiny country…

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Feb 02, 2025

It's becoming clearer and clearer that we're looking at a seismic shift in the US's relationship with the world, between: 1) The US dismantling its foreign interference apparatuses (like USAID 👇) 2) Marco Rubio stating that we're now in a multipolar world with "multi-great powers in different parts of the planet" (state.gov/secretary-marc…) and that "the postwar global order is not just obsolete; it is now a weapon being used against us" (foreign.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/…) 3) The tariffs on supposed "allies" like Mexico, Canada or the EU This is the US effectively saying "our attempt at running the world is over, to each his own, we're now just another great power, not the 'indispensable nation'." It looks "dumb" (as the WSJ just wrote) if you are still mentally in the old paradigm but it's always a mistake to think that what the US (or any country) does is dumb. Hegemony was going to end sooner or later, and now the U.S. is basically choosing to end it on its own terms. It is the post-American world order - brought to you by America itself. Even the tariffs on allies, viewed under this angle, make sense, as it redefines the concept of "allies": they don't want - or maybe rather can't afford - vassals anymore, but rather relationships that evolve based on current interests. You can either view it as decline - because it does unquestionably look like the end of the American empire - or as avoiding further decline: controlled withdrawal from imperial commitments in order to focus resources on core national interests rather than being forced into an even messier retreat at a later stage. In any case it is the end of an era and, while the Trump administration looks like chaos to many observers, they're probably much more attuned to the changing realities of the world and their own country's predicament than their predecessors. Acknowledging the existence of a multipolar world and choosing to operate within it rather than trying to maintain an increasingly costly global hegemony couldn't be delayed much further. It looks messy but it is probably better than maintaining the fiction of American primacy until it eventually collapses under its own weight. This is not to say that the U.S. won't continue to wreak havoc on the world, and in fact we might be seeing it become even more aggressive than before. Because when it previously was (badly, and very hypocritically) trying to maintain some semblance of self-proclaimed "rules-based order", it now doesn't even have to pretend it is under any constraint, not even the constraint of playing nice with allies. It's the end of the U.S. empire, but definitely not the end of the U.S. as a major disruptive force in world affairs. All in all this transformation may mark one of the most significant shifts in international relations since the fall of the Soviet Union. And those most unprepared for it, as is already painfully obvious, are America's vassals caught completely flat-footed by the realization that the patron they've relied on for decades is now treating them as just another set of countries to negotiate with.

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jan 28, 2024

Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Jun 13, 2024

These have undoubtedly been the wildest 72 hours in French politics in my lifetime. Pretty incredible stuff. A 🧵

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Arnaud Bertrand@RnaudBertrand · Nov 20

In a normal world, this should be an immense scandal in Europe. Le Monde has a long article (lemonde.fr/international/…) describing the hellish life of Nicolas Guillou, a French judge at the ICC in The Hague, due to U.S. sanctions punishing him for authorizing arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant for war crimes in Gaza. Guillou's daily existence has been transformed into a Kafkaesque nightmare. He cannot: open or maintain accounts with Google, Amazon, Apple, or any US company; make hotel reservations (Expedia canceled his booking in France hours after he made it); conduct online commerce, since he can't know if the packaging is American; use any major credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Amex are all American); access normal banking services, even with non-American banks, as banks worldwide close sanctioned accounts; conduct virtually any financial transaction. He describes it as being "economically banned across most of the planet," including in his own country, France, and where he works, the Netherlands. That's the real shocking aspect of this: the Americans are: - punishing a European citizen - for doing his job in Europe - applying laws Europe officially supports - at an institution based in Europe - that Europe helped create and fund and Europe is not only doing essentially nothing to protect him, they're actively enforcing America's sanctions against their own citizen - European banks closing his accounts, European companies refusing him service, European institutions standing by while Washington destroys a European judge's life on European soil. Again, in a normal world, European leaders and citizens should be absolutely outraged about this. But we've so normalized the hollowing out of European sovereignty that the sight of a European citizen being economically executed on European soil for upholding European law is treated, at best, as an unfortunate technical complication in transatlantic relations.

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