For decades, U.S. technology companies have been a key driver of American prosperity. Today, they are increasingly vital to our national security. Private innovation in cutting-edge fields like artificial intelligence is essential to our ability to outcompete our chief geopolitical rival — the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) — both economically and militarily.
Yet the U.S. is at risk of losing our competitive edge. Just last month, a European Parliament committee overwhelmingly approved a proposal — the Digital Markets Act (DMA) — that could hobble the U.S. tech sector to China’s benefit. To regain the upper hand in the global innovation race, we need tech policies that promote rather than impede innovation. We need our European allies to present a united front with us against the CCP rather than engage in friendly fire. And policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic need to carefully weigh the national security implications of sweeping new tech regulations.
The CCP’s audacious goal is to dominate the high-tech industries that will determine the shape of the world’s economy and military balance for decades to come. Already, China accounts for nine of the world’s top 20 tech companies. (The others are American.)
Beijing has achieved this by brazenly stealing intellectual property from Western firms. It lavishly subsidizes its “national champions,” while insulating them from competition, and uses its clout to set international standards favorable to their interests. Make no mistake: China’s tech giants are instruments of the party-state.
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