The U.S. optimized for efficiency, innovation, and globalization. China optimized for control, scale, and industrial learning.
I. Reframing the “Great Divergence”: Not Race or Values, but Cost-Efficient Violence and Industrial Power 1. The Foundations of the Great Divergence: Power, Production, and Coercion The historical “Great Divergence” between the Global North and the Global South was not enabled by racial superiority, cultural refinement, or the intrinsic legitimacy of Western values. Rather, it … Read more
1. A General Assessment of “We Warned About the First China Shock. The Next One Will Be Worse” The July 14, 2025 New York Times article, “We Warned About the First China Shock. The Next One Will Be Worse,” by David Autor and Gordon Hanson, presents a forceful intervention in the debate over U.S.–China economic … Read more
The United States’ growing unease over China’s lunar exploration stems from a clear realization: China is no longer merely experimenting in space—it is executing a disciplined, long-term plan with precision and seriousness. The completion of the Chang’e-6 mission revealed more than scientific data or engineering skill; it exposed deeper signals about China’s strategic focus and … Read more
Ren Zhengfei’s stewardship of Huawei reflects an uncommon combination of long-term vision, holistic thinking, and flexible resilience. More than a technologist or executive leader, he operates as a master strategist, designing robust organizational systems that allow Huawei to endure and evolve amid geopolitical constraints and technological disruption. His leadership choices have not only defined Huawei’s … Read more
The collapse of the Soviet Union raises a central question: could reform have preserved it? Interpreted on China’s terms, the contrast is clear. China survived prolonged upheaval by undertaking systemic transformations that built not only industrial capacity but a resilient industrial ecosystem, balanced authority with internal checks, and fostered strategic autonomy. These foundations allowed later … Read more
China will still generate major, highly successful companies, but they are more likely to arise from capital-driven growth and platform expansion—such as ByteDance or Tencent—rather than from the kind of organically built industrial powerhouse represented by Huawei. The specific historical, political, and economic conditions that enabled Huawei’s rise are unlikely to occur again, meaning future … Read more
Over the past several decades, the West—especially the United States—has drifted into what anthropologist David Graeber termed a “big idea famine,” marked by a decline in transformative innovation despite abundant capital and talent. Military and strategic technological progress has slowed as ethical hesitation, bureaucratic inertia, and weak prioritization constrain experimentation, while the civilian tech sector … Read more
In The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West (2025), Alexander C. Karp and Nicholas W. Zamiska argue that the United States, particularly Silicon Valley, has the potential to revive a mission-driven technological culture, but only by breaking free from the ideological constraints that have dominated since the 1980s. These … Read more
In The Technological Republic (2025), Alexander C. Karp and Nicholas W. Zamiska explore Western, particularly U.S., anxiety over China, framing it as a strategic concern rather than a mere cultural or economic rivalry. The authors argue that this anxiety stems from a fear of losing technological, military, and geopolitical dominance at a time when the … Read more
In The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West (2025), Alexander C. Karp and Nicholas W. Zamiska argue that Western technology ecosystems—most notably Silicon Valley—drifted away from strategically consequential “hard tech,” becoming instead preoccupied with convenience, lifestyle innovation, and short-term shareholder value. This shift, they contend, left critical domains of … Read more