Vicky Xu
I’m an independent researcher and adviser focused on cross-border state behavior, authoritarian governance, and the risks these dynamics create for companies, institutions, and decision-makers operating internationally.I previously worked as a journalist with The New York Times, and my research has been cited by United Nations and used to inform policy and legislative discussions in multiple jurisdictions.My work combines open-source investigation, alternative data analysis, and primary-source research to examine how state power is exercised through regulatory, legal, economic, and administrative tools. A 2020 report, Uyghurs for Sale, used novel open-source methods to map forced-labour supply chains involving 83 multinational companies.More recently, I’ve led and contributed to analytical risk assessments for investors and organizations, advised on China-related regulatory and geopolitical exposure, and undertaken discrete research projects requiring high levels of judgment, discretion, and methodological rigor.I also deliver briefings, workshops, and advisory sessions on China-related risk, cross-border state behavior, open-source research methods, and information and operational safety.For professional enquiries or collaboration, contact me by email.
Research & Advisory
In my current role, I lead a small team with strong access to Chinese-language sources and datasets. We integrate primary material, data analysis, and satellite imagery with open-source methods that are continuously refined. Working in volatile China-related contexts and shifting geopolitical conditions, we sustain clarity and reliability through constant adaptation that is rarely seen elsewhere. The findings are presented in the way I learned in newsrooms: rigorous, accessible, and independent.---Areas of focus
- China-related regulatory, political, and operational risk
- Cross-border state behavior and tactics (analytical, non-advocacy)
- Sanctions exposure, compliance risk, and enforcement dynamics
- State–business interaction and market access risk
- Information control, legal pressure, and administrative coercion across jurisdictions---Engagement formats- Research projects
- Advisory or consulting retainers
- Trgeted briefings and workshops
- Expert consultations on specific risk questions---We’re always looking for new research questions that push us to think in new ways.
Journalism
I published my first piece of journalism as a university student on summer break, in The New York Times. The story investigated a flooding disaster in Hebei, China, where government mismanagement lead to severe human consequences.After freelancing for a range of outlets on geopolitics, business, and human rights, I joined The New York Times full time soon after graduating. Since then, my investigations have examined influence campaigns, technology transfers, and forced labour supply chains, among other issues.At the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, I led Uyghurs for Sale (2020) and The Architecture of Repression (2021) -- both regarding mass human rights violations in northwest China. This body of work has been cited in the UN’s Xinjiang report, informed legislation in the U.S., UK, and Australia, and dozens of media outlets. Both reports remain reference points in human rights and supply chain compliance.These projects broke ground by applying methods rarely used in an environment that was growing increasingly opaque. When direct access to Xinjiang was cut off, my team turned to satellite imagery. When records were removed from the internet, we recovered them. When companies concealed supply chains, we developed techniques to trace them. The capacity to innovate under constraint continues to define my research practice.
Creative
I began performing stand-up comedy in Sydney in 2018, developing a style that mixed confessional and absurdist humor with the more difficult parts of geopolitics and personal experience. In 2019 I headlined The Chaser Lecture, a high-profile annual event by one of Australia’s most prominent satire groups, staged at the University of Sydney. Since then I’ve performed across clubs and on television, and consulted in writers’ rooms for TV and film.Alongside comedy, I’ve been writing a memoir. First commissioned in 2021, the book has gone through many drafts, but I continue to refine it with the aim of creating something both honest and inventive.I also practice martial arts and won gold in the women’s 54kg Muay Thai division at a 2024 national tournament in Taiwan (amateur).
Social media
My main social platform has been Substack. In 2025 and 2026 I plan to publish there more regularly. Subscribe to stay updated!https://substack.com/@vickyxuI also use X, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Please feel free to connect with me on whichever platform you find most convenient.