Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei has dominated headlines and become the go-to example for concerns about Chinese technology. On Thursday, those concerns touted by the U.S. were bolstered by British findings showing “serious and systematic defects” pointing to cybersecurity risks.
But as Washington frets about Huawei, the company and its growing dominance is just the tip of the iceberg of China’s tech development ambitions.
Although the Chinese state has dropped the “Made in China 2025” initiative, the underlying plan of dominating emerging technology sectors remains at the heart of China’s plans, and they extend beyond the 5G networks that Washington is so worried about.
Huawei’s model of developing and selling its technology paired with investment to capture markets is a model that China is likely to reproduce in other areas as well. And in fields like green technology, robotics, and artificial intelligence, heavy investment shows that the Chinese state fully expects these efforts to be successful.
That means that the challenge for the U.S. and its allies in Europe and elsewhere isn’t just safeguarding developing 5G networks from potentially prying eyes in Beijing, but addressing similar attempts to undercut Western-dominated industries in other sectors and thereby deny China a stranglehold on the infrastructure and innovation that will underpin the future.
To do so, however, requires more than findings of security flaws and heavy-handed warnings from Washington. It requires investment and development to rival what Beijing is offering. Already, Europe seems to understand this, as recent investments from the European Investment Bank have backed Nokia to develop its own 5G technology.
That’s a better approach, offering alternatives to China’s tech. But the Trump administration unfortunately has charted a course in just the opposite direction. Instead of investing in new technology, he’s used protective tariffs to boost outdated U.S. manufacturing. Instead of championing green technology, he’s looked to coal. Instead of funding more education and research, he’s proposed to cut funds for universities and added extra bureaucratic red tape.
Washington needs to wake up. Huawei is just the tip of the iceberg of China’s broader plan. Unless the U.S. and its allies are willing to take the “threat” they spend so much time taking about seriously, the competition for future technologies will be won by Beijing. That we are struggling even to deal with just one company’s rapid development does not bode well for the future of the U.S. technological dominance.
