The View | Self-defeating US tech war represents China’s Sputnik moment
- While US technology sanctions have impeded innovation in China, it’s open to question whether they sufficiently suppress China’s rise and at what cost to the US economy
- The US’ efforts could stifle domestic innovation and drive away start-ups and tech companies while benefiting other countries and forcing China to become free of American tech
The United States is waging multipronged economic warfare on China, justified by a litany of alleged Chinese economic misconduct. US-China rivalry will play out primarily in the economic and technology spheres in this decade and the next.
Innovation is a globally connected phenomenon. Apart from how the US “learned” from Europe at the beginning of its industrialisation, the US benefited from talent and technology as a result of the exodus from Nazi Germany.
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US Senate passes massive bipartisan bill to counter tech competition from China
For example, US chip maker Qualcomm co-developed its CDMA technologies in partnership with South Korea. Dutch ASML’s machines for making advanced chips are built upon technology and components from Germany, Japan and the US. Neither the US nor China can innovate effectively if cut off from the global technology ecosystem.