福报

In 2019, Alibaba founder Jack Ma declared that working 996 (9am–9pm, six days a week) was a 'blessing' (福报) employees should cherish. The internet promptly did what the internet does best: turned it into a sarcastic catchphrase. Now '福报' is ironic shorthand for any exploitative work demand dressed up as a spiritual gift. Think of it as the Chinese cousin of 'exposure' — the currency bosses offer instead of actual pay.

China's tech boom created brutal 996 work cultures at major firms, leaving young workers exhausted and resentful. Ma's 'blessing' framing — invoking Buddhist karma to justify unpaid overtime — struck a nerve in a generation already anxious about job security, rising costs, and stagnant wages. The backlash spawned the '996.ICU' GitHub repository and cemented 福报 as a symbol of corporate doublespeak.

马云称996是"福报"，引发网友对过度加班文化的强烈讽刺与嘲弄。