National Competitiveness

Please join ITIF for an important policy conference on what U.S. policymakers must do to prevent America from suffering a catastrophic defeat in its techno-economic-trade war with China. At stake are vital production capabilities in the advanced, traded-sector industries that provide the foundation for economic strength and national security in the 21st century.

The lessons of America’s worst trade decision remain unlearned.

The Canada Strong Fund is trying to be a sovereign wealth fund, development bank, commercial investor, industrial policy vehicle, and retail savings product all at once. Until Ottawa clearly defines its purpose, it risks becoming a debt-financed vehicle searching for a rationale.

China has overtaken the United States in R&D investment for the first time amid slowing U.S. R&D growth. Without stronger policy action, America risks falling further behind.

ITIF hosted an expert panel discussion on a new report that lays out a detailed policy agenda with over 100 actionable recommendations that the United States and its allies should adopt to limit the success of Chinese firms in national power industries and slow the PRC’s progress toward global techno-economic and industrial dominance.

When U.S. technology companies compete in China, they capture revenue, learn technologies and trends from a critical market, and extend U.S.-built ecosystems. Forcing them out of China would weaken U.S. global competitiveness and give Chinese firms greater scale to shape technology ecosystems.

In 2024, researchers and scientists in China were responsible for developing more than 1,250 new drugs, more than the EU and just slightly less than the United States, which developed 1,440. In total, China developed 30 percent of the world's new innovative drugs.

Please join ITIF for a virtual panel featuring authors of a new book by MIT Press, Priority Technologies: Ensuring US Security and Shared Prosperity. Experts will discuss how to strengthen U.S. innovation and industrial ecosystems and which priority technologies will be critical to long-term global economic, military, and technological leadership in the decades ahead.

An increasing share of U.S. doctoral degrees are awarded in STEM fields, and many of these graduates pursue positions that depend heavily on federal research funding. Yet the Trump administration has proposed significant cuts to key science agencies in its FY 2027 budget request.

Ottawa is choosing its next Competition Commissioner, who will decide if firms are allowed to get big by competing or punished for trying. Canada needs competition policy that protects consumers without treating scale, investment, or ambition as suspect.