Based on the knowledge creation strategies of several ethnic Chinese entrepreneurs and their firms (OSIM, Qian Hu and BenQ), the paper attempts to shed light on 'Chinese conceptions of knowledge' in an era of globalization, flexible identities and digital knowledge traps. Based on ongoing knowledge management research in Asia (Menkhoff, Chay and Evers eds. 2005; Menkhoff, Pang and Evers eds. 2007 forthcoming), the paper argues that there is a great diversity of 'Chinese knowledge cultures' in the region whose constituting elements are little understood. Besides identifying and analysing some of the features of these knowledge cultures, the essay outlines the challenges ahead for Chinese capital in the region in view of the rapid expansion of the global knowledge-based economy.