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Beijing’s Tech Ambitions: What Exactly Does It Want?

macropolo.org · 921 words · saved by 1 readers

It’s no secret that China has big ambitions for technology. But the exact contours of those ambitions are less clear, often obscured behind vague labels like “tech superpower.” So what does the Chinese government actually want from its tech industry over the next five years? China’s broader technology aims can be broken down into three…

It’s no secret that China has big ambitions for technology. But the exact contours of those ambitions are less clear, often obscured behind vague labels like “tech superpower.” So what does the Chinese government actually want from its tech industry over the next five years? China’s broader technology aims can be broken down into three buckets: self-reliance, fundamental breakthroughs, and economic upgrading (see Figure 1). As much as the three goals overlap, they also present Beijing with tradeoffs. A billion yuan put toward fundamental breakthroughs might have no real economic impact in…

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