China Innovation Policy Series (CIPS)
Report
China’s Uneven High-Tech Drive: Implications for the United States
Report No. 6 February 27, 2020
This report, with contributions from leading U.S. and Chinese experts, provides a dispassionate assessment of China’s high-tech drive and the implications for the United States and the global economy. The first section examines the overall trajectory of Chinese innovation. The second part takes an in-depth look at several prominent cases, including 5G, artificial intelligence, and autonomous vehicles. Collectively, this analysis indicates a highly uneven record of performance, with substantial successes and major problems. The report’s final section suggests how, in light of these findings, the United States and China should address the challenges in technology innovation and their broader relationship.
Smart Money on Chinese Advances in AI
Report No. 5 September 2019
Few countries have embraced the vision of an AI-powered future as fervently as China. Unlike the United States, the Chinese government is dedicating significant resources and attention to AI development and creating a supportive policy environment to facilitate innovation and experimentation and proactively manage risk. However, numerous misconceptions and competing narratives around China’s innovation economy have made it difficult for U.S. policymakers to understand the AI ecosystem in China and its links to AI innovation in the United States. This report seeks to improve this understanding by examining China’s progress toward achieving its four strategic goals.
Learning the Superior Techniques of the Barbarians
Report No.4 January 2019
While China has made immense investments in science and technology, and while these are producing results, it is still dependent on Western technology. This is particularly true for semiconductors. China’s dependence on foreign semiconductors has worried Beijing for decades. China suspects that Western semiconductors contain “backdoors,” intentional vulnerabilities that can be exploited for intelligence and military purposes. In 2016, President Xi Jinping said, “the fact that core technology is controlled by others is our greatest hidden danger.” Vice Premier Ma Kai said at the 2018 National People’s Congress, “We cannot be reliant on foreign chips.” China intends to end this dependence, but despite 40 years of investment and espionage, it is unable to make advanced semiconductors. Along the way, there have been embarrassing frauds and expensive failures.
China’s Risky Drive into New-Energy Vehicles
Report No.3 November 2018
China has made developing new-energy vehicles (NEV) a top priority. The hope is that NEVs will help the country transform from a follower to a technological leader in the automobile sector, reduce China’s dependence on imported oil, and improve the country’s overall air quality. To achieve these goals, China has employed an intensive, government-led effort to generate a steady supply of NEVs, batteries, and other key components, as well as promote consumer demand. However, the results of these efforts are mixed.
Disruptors, Innovators, and Thieves: Assessing Innovation in China's Digital Economy
Report No.2 January 2018
The Chinese leadership has made clear that the digital economy and information and communication technologies (ICT) now underpins the country’s economic development. Consensus is forming around two main points. The first is China’s internet companies are no longer mere “copycats” or clones of western companies. The second is that BATJ are making a strong push to expand to global markets. This report demonstrates that China’s internet companies are at once disruptive innovators, micro-innovators, and copycats. It also demonstrates that trends in China’s digital economy are increasingly shaping US and global companies, and vice versa. Lastly, this report reviews policy challenges to innovation in China.
The Fat Tech Dragon: Benchmarking China's Innovation Drive
Report No.1 August 2017
The purpose of this report is to develop a baseline analysis of innovation in China by systematically examining national trends in China while placing the country in comparative perspective. The report presents data on innovation inputs, such as finance, as well as several types of innovation outputs, such as intellectual property and commercial performance. This study relies primarily on broad quantitative measures because they facilitate measuring trends over time and engaging in cross-national comparison. The numerical data are supplemented by interviews with business executives, industry analysts, investors, and government officials in the United States and in China.