At Paris summit, US and EU vow coordinated tech standards to counter China
- Negotiators at the allies’ Trade and Technology Council sign an agreement to influence international standard-setting bodies for cutting-edge tech
- Electric vehicle charging will be the first area of focus and is set to be a ‘game changer’, official says
After two days of intensive talks in Paris, the EU and US vowed to step up efforts to set the rules of the road for cutting-edge technology, in order to counter the rising influence of China and other “non-market economies”.
Speaking to reporters after the second meeting of the Trade and Technology Council, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the pair would “work together to align our technology standards in a way that’s consistent with our democratic values”.
“If non-market economies control international standard-setting bodies, it’s a very powerful way to block out the US and the EU. So we are going to work together to make sure we show up at the standard-setting bodies,” Raimondo said, in a thinly veiled reference to Beijing.
The West has long been concerned about losing the fight on standardisation for hi-tech products, which can be lucrative but also strategically crucial given the rapid pace of technological development.
It is an often-repeated mantra that whoever leads on advanced tech sectors like artificial intelligence, quantum computing, 5G, 6G and beyond will rule the world, and transatlantic officials see the signing of a specific agreement on standards in Paris as a first step to wresting back some control from China on this front.