London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Former Google CEO and others want action on ‘asymmetric competition’ from China

Former Google CEO and others want action on ‘asymmetric competition’ from China

Report calls for determined action to tackle tech competition with China and says a certain amount of ‘bifurcation’ is inevitable.
An American group led by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has produced a report that says Washington needs to manage “asymmetric competition” with China when it comes to technology and that a certain degree of “bifurcation” would be in US interests.

“America’s technological leadership is fundamental to its security, prosperity, and democratic way of life. But this vital advantage is now at risk, with China surging to overtake the United States in critical areas,” says the report by the China Strategy Group (CSG), a collection of influential US tech practitioners and policy researchers. “Urgent policy solutions are needed to renew American competitiveness and sustain critical US technological advantages.”

The CSG, formed in July 2020 to tackle “the most difficult questions regarding US competitiveness with China on technology” also includes Jared Cohen, the chief executive of Jigsaw and a former adviser to former US secretaries of state Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton. “Urgent policy solutions are needed to renew American competitiveness and sustain critical US technological advantages,” says the report, whose authors are writing in a personal capacity.

“China plays by a different set of rules that allow it to benefit from corporate espionage, illiberal surveillance, and a blurry line between its public and private sector,” the report says.

Other authors include Liz Economy, a senior fellow for China studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, and Richard Fontaine, the chief executive at the Centre for a New American Security,

While it is not known whether the new Biden administration will accept the report’s recommendations, which include forming a diplomatic alliance of “techno-democracies” and creating new offices like a deputy national security adviser for technology within the White House, its publication reflects broad-based recognition in US policy circles that Washington must develop a systematic approach to dealing with competition from China.

“As we seek to avoid unnecessary and counterproductive levels of separation, we should also recognise that some degree of disentangling is inevitable and preferable,” the report says. “In fact, trends in both countries – and many of the tools at our disposal – inherently and necessarily push toward some kind of bifurcation.”

Technology rivalry between China and the US intensified during the Trump administration, as the US government restricted China’s access to advanced US-origin technology as well as increased scrutiny of Chinese scientists and researchers on the grounds of national security.

The restrictions have deprived some of China’s leading tech firms, such as Huawei Technologies Co, of critical components such as chips and software, and prompted Beijing to redouble self-sufficiency efforts in core science areas.

The report says that Trump administration policies “have done little to arrest America’s eroding technological advantages” and China “is in a highly competitive position in several critical technologies, with massive investment driving its efforts to indigenise production and eventually supplant US technological dominance, though it currently remains dependent on the United States and allies in key areas”.

It indicated that the US has led in areas like artificial intelligence, fusion, quantum computing and autonomous vehicles. But China also has competitive advantages stemming from its greater domestic market scale, flexible regulatory environment and “faster product integration loop”.

Avoiding the word “decoupling”, the report suggests that the US government restructure the executive branch, to implement new talent and immigration policies, to pull in public and private resources to support key technologies of the future and forge new partnerships.

The US needs to build an “education system that prepares researchers for industry roles”, such as investing more in science and technology education and “addressing the current bottlenecks in immigration policy” to cope with the declining stay rates of foreign talent.

The researchers also propose certain benchmarks for Washington to decide the “technological battlegrounds”, such as whether the technologies are “choke point” ones or whether they pose direct national security threats to the US. Gene editing and next-generations chips, for instance, would fit this bill, says the report.

The report states that internet platforms should be analysed via two angles – their strategic implication and commercial value. Search engines, social networking, mobile app stores and messaging apps, for instance, all have high strategic and commercial value whereas video games and e-commerce, while big revenue-earners, are low on strategic significance.

The authors did not mention any particular internet platforms by name. The Trump administration has targeted global short video hit TikTok and Tencent Holdings’ super app WeChat, which has a huge user base in China.

The researchers argue that banning platforms should be a “last resort” because such action could trigger retaliation by Beijing that only harms US interests. Instead, Washington should try alternative approaches, such as “acceptance of dependency on a Chinese platform” if that platform can meet certain requirements, concessions negotiated with the Chinese government or apply technologies to mitigate potential risks.

Jing Vivian Zhan, an associate professor at the department of Government & Public Administration at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said there is strong support in the US for being tough on China and stopping the country’s technological development.

China will need to respond, says Zhan, by boosting investment in science and technology, luring global talent and improving its higher education system to foster innovation.

Wang Yong, an international relations professor at Peking University, said that China has learned a costly lesson over the last four years, namely that “the US is a very unreliable supplier of hi-tech technology and key technical components”.

“It’s difficult to count on the US. As such, China must have independent and innovative strength,” said Wang.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×