Discussion keeps the world turning.
This is Round Table.
You're listening to Round Table.
I'm Steve Hatherly today with Fei Fei and Yu Shan.
Coming up, one exam rewires the rhythm of an entire nation.
Mothers and fathers become strategists and schedulers and emotional support crews.
Taxi drivers, police officers and app developers all find themselves part of the same mission.
This is the Gaokao.
For millions of teenagers, no moment carries more weight.
So, in 2026, with AI assistance and smart classrooms reshaping education,
what has become of this tradition?
You can forget the scores for a minute
because we want to know what this ritual actually looks like in the year 2026.
Every year around this time in China, an entire country seems to hold its breath.
Traffic patterns change. Construction sites will go quiet.
Parents become part-time logistics coordinators.
The police officers, the taxi drivers, and even the tech companies
suddenly find themselves connected by one shared mission.
At the center of it all are millions of young people
carrying pencils, admission tickets, and perhaps a few butterflies in their stomach.