China leads US in global competition for key emerging technologies, study finds

Name: China’s biggest drone maker DJI blacklisted by US defence department
Uploaded: 2023-03-02T10:13:31.000Z
Duration: 1 min 30 s
Description: China’s biggest drone maker DJI blacklisted by US defence department

Australian think tank tracking defence, space, energy and biotechnology research says China has a ‘stunning lead in high-impact research’

In photonic sensors and quantum communication, China’s research strength could result in it ‘going dark’ to Western intelligence surveillance, report says

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A study funded by the US State Department found the US was often second to China in research output although it led global research in high-performance computing, quantum computing, small satellites and vaccines. Illustration: Reuters

Reuters

Published: 6:13pm, 2 Mar 2023Updated: 7:24pm, 2 Mar 2023

China has a “stunning lead” in 37 of 44 critical and emerging technologies as Western democracies lose a global competition for research output, a security think tank said on Thursday after tracking defence, space, energy and biotechnology.

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) said its study showed that, in some fields, all the world’s top 10 research institutions were based in China.

The study, funded by the United States State Department, found the US was often second-ranked, although it led global research in high-performance computing, quantum computing, small satellites and vaccines.

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China’s biggest drone maker DJI blacklisted by US defence department

“Western democracies are losing the global technological competition, including the race for scientific and research breakthroughs,” the report said, urging greater research investment by governments.

China had established a “stunning lead in high-impact research” under government programmes.

The report called for democratic nations to collaborate more often to create secure supply chains and “rapidly pursue a strategic critical technology step-up”.

ASPI tracked the most-cited scientific papers, which it said were the most likely to result in patents. China’s surprise breakthrough in hypersonic missiles in 2021 would have been identified earlier if China’s strong research had been detected, it said.

“Over the past five years, China generated 48.49 per cent of the world’s high-impact research papers into advanced aircraft engines, including hypersonics, and it hosts seven of the world’s top 10 research institutions,” it said.

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