The prevailing view of China’s economy has long been that it is a production powerhouse—“the world’s factory floor”—but otherwise a mere “fast follower” that lacks the leading-edge scientific and technological capabilities to develop new-to-the-world innovations of its own. If that were true, then the United States and its allies in the West would have little need to reconsider their industrial policies to remain globally competitive. But if Chinese firms are becoming true innovators in the advanced industries at the heart of the global economy, then the America and the West face a far more formidable competitive challenge.

ITIF hosted a Capitol Hill briefing event to discuss the findings of its 20-month ITIF investigation into Chinese firms’ innovative performance in key advanced industries, including robotics, chemicals, nuclear power, electric vehicles and batteries, biotechnology, semiconductors, AI, quantum computing, and display technologies. How close is China to the frontiers of scientific and technological innovation, and what lessons can U.S. policymakers draw to improve America’s innovation capabilities and maintain its competitive advantage in advanced industries?

Featured Speaker

• U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar, Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party

Panel 1: Assessing Chinese Firms’ Technology and Innovation Capabilities

• Stephen Ezell, Vice President, Global Innovation Policy, and Director, Center for Life Sciences Innovation, ITIF (Moderator)
• Emily Jin, China Analyst, Datenna
• Rick Switzer, Former Director, U.S. Department of State

Panel 2: Assessing the Chinese National Innovation System and Implications for U.S. Policy

• Robert D. Atkinson, President, ITIF (Moderator)
• Rush Doshi, C.V. Starr Senior Fellow for Asia Studies and Director of the China Strategy Initiative, Council on Foreign Relations
• Liza Tobin, Senior Director for Economy, Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP)