Nations have long sought to use technology as a power-multiplier for their own ambitions. In the twenty-first century, at a time of unprecedented innovation, the United States and China are in a race to achieve technological superiority. But how will this affect long-standing trade ties and the international landscape?
Techno-nationalism holds that a nation's economic strength and its national security—even its social stability—are linked to the technological prowess of its institutions and enterprises. From artificial intelligence and biotechnology to semiconductors and quantum science, nations that fall behind in the technology race risk becoming permanent losers, with potentially catastrophic consequences. After decades of trade liberalization and free-flowing investment into China, a paradigm shift amongst a bloc of like-minded, mostly Western countries, has set in motion epic change. Techno-nationalism is reorganizing the global economy.
Alex Capri, who spent decades as a trade and supply chain professional, lays out the dynamics of this change and its underlying themes, from the paradox facing US-China commercial linkages to the gray zones in which states and firms must now try to coexist. He provides a realist's perspective of both the challenges and opportunities facing international actors.