Xi wanted China to be at the tech frontier. 5 years on, tensions with the U.S. have dented that goal

Xi wanted China to be at the tech frontier. 5 years on, tensions with the U.S. have dented that goal

• Xi Jinping once declared China should “prioritize innovation” in “cutting-edge frontier technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies.”
• Five years on, at the Communist Party of China’s 20th National Congress, Xi will take stock of China’s achievements in science and technology, which have yielded mixed results.
• The global reality for China has transformed as an ongoing trade war, Covid and a change in political direction at home has hurt some of Beijing’s goals.
• U.S. export curbs and restrictions are likely to hurt China’s ambitions in areas such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence in the future, analysts said.

Xi Jinping once declared China should “prioritize innovation” and be on the “cutting-edge (of) frontier technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies.”

Since that speech in 2017, Beijing has spoken about technologies it wants to boost its prowess in, ranging from artificial intelligence to 5G technology and semiconductors.

Five years since Xi’s address at the Communist Party of China’s last National Congress, the global reality for the world’s second-largest economy has transformed. It comes amid an ongoing trade war with the U.S., challenges from Covid and a change in political direction at home that have hurt some of Beijing’s goals.

On Sunday, the 20th National Congress — held once every five years — will begin in Beijing. The high-level meeting is expected to pave the way for Xi to carry on as head of the Communist Party for an unprecedented third five-year term.

Xi will take stock of China’s achievements in science and technology, which have yielded mixed results.

“I agree it is a mixed bag,” Charles Mok, visiting scholar at the Global Digital Policy Incubator at Stanford University.

He said China sets “lofty” goals as it targets to be the best, but “they are limited politically and ideologically in terms of the strategies to reach them.”

Private tech enterprises are faltering under stricter regulation and a slowing economy. China is far from self-sufficient in semiconductors, a task made harder by recent U.S. export controls. Censorship on the mainland has tightened as well.

But China has made some notable advancements in areas such as 5G and space travel.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/14/china-communist-party-congress-2022-xi-jinpings-tech-policy-in-focus.html