Competitiveness

Is China Catching Up to the United States in Innovation?
If China were only a copier, then the competitive threat to advanced economies would be limited. But there is no reason to believe China won’t follow the path of “Asian tigers” that rapidly evolved from copiers to innovators, which poses a serious threat.
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For a menu of actionable ideas for policymakers related to competitiveness, see ITIF’s “Tech Policy To-Do List.”

Competitiveness
Check a box to narrow search for individual content items that cover numerous issues.
April 15, 2019
The Digital Economy Grew 4.3 Times Faster than the U.S. Economy Overall from 1997 to 2017
Last week, the Bureau of Economic Analysis updated a recent paper on the digital economy to include more precise data, and it expanded the observed period to cover the years 1997 through 2017. In doing so, it found that the digital economy grew 9.9 percent annually over this 20-year period—4.3 times faster than the overall economy—and represented 6.9 percent of U.S. GDP as of 2017.
April 9, 2019
The Critical Role of the NIH in Boosting Economic Competitiveness
America’s ability to compete globally in biomedical innovation is being threatened.
April 8, 2019
Is China Catching Up to the United States in Innovation?
If China were only a copier, then the competitive threat to advanced economies would be limited. But there is no reason to believe China won’t follow the path of “Asian tigers” that rapidly evolved from copiers to innovators, which poses a serious threat.
April 1, 2019
Make Way for China’s Railway
As Rob Atkinson writes for Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Margarethe Vestager’s decision to veto a merger between rail companies Alstom and Siemens shows how preventing EU firms from merging will result in weakened and shrunken European competitors.
March 28, 2019
How America Can Win the Global Talent Race
The United States has long been a magnet for the best talent in the world, particularly in science and engineering disciplines. But now, as American policymakers engage in a necessary debate about low-skill immigration, that issue has been conflated with the separate issue of high-skill STEM immigration, and the unfortunate result has been unduly harsh scrutiny and stricter limits on the latter. ITIF hosted a panel discussion exploring the controversies of the H-1B visa.
March 26, 2019
Promoting European Growth, Productivity, and Competitiveness by Taking Advantage of the Next Digital Technology Wave
The EU has an opportunity to make major strides in the next wave of digital transformation. But it will need to adopt a forward-looking policy perspective that focuses on the benefits of connectivity, automation, and smart systems for Europe’s economy and society.
March 11, 2019
Elizabeth Warren’s Plan to Break Up Big Tech Would Hurt Consumers, Innovation
As Joe Kennedy writes for Fox Business, Elizabeth Warren’s plan to break up big tech would raise consumer prices, limit choice and discourage innovation.
February 19, 2019
Chinese Government-backed Investment Funds Aim to Control $1.7 Trillion
In the decade since the global financial crisis, the Chinese government has moved aggressively to stimulate capital investment that will strengthen its competitive position, both domestically and in global markets.
January 28, 2019
Former Chinese State-Owned Enterprises Produce More Patents than Current SOEs but Still Lag Private Firms
Recognizing that state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are less profitable and innovative than private firms, China relinquished control of many SOEs beginning in the late 1990s, but still gives former SOEs easier access to loans and favors them in allocating subsidies. A new study analyzed the impacts of this, observing Chinese enterprises’ performance between 1998 and 2013.
December 5, 2018
Building High-Performance SME Clusters for American Competitiveness in the 21st Century
The U.S. needs to cultivate more and better clusters of small and medium-sized (SME) manufacturing firms in order to compete in a global industry with an increased reliance on smart manufacturing technologies. Join ITIF for a morning conference exploring how digital technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, 3D printing, and the Internet of Things are reshaping modern manufacturing and what policymakers can do to help foster high-performance SME manufacturing clusters.

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