For the U.S. and China, a Technology Cold War That’s Freezing Over
A cold war is being waged across the world’s most advanced industries. And it just got a lot chillier.
Recent
tit-for-tat trade actions could deepen what has become a global contest
for technological dominance between the United States and China, home
to the planet’s largest population of internet users and a flourishing
community of start-ups and innovative companies.
The
Trump administration this week accused Beijing of stealing valuable
technological know-how from American companies as it proposed tariffs on $60 billion in Chinese goods and curbs on Chinese investments. China responded with its own set of penalties aimed at American products.
The
fight between the two countries is cleaving the high-tech realm. The
world’s two biggest economies have each become increasingly protective
of their own leading-edge industries, and mistrustful of the other’s.
Reconciliation looks difficult. And the rising tensions could further
undercut American influence in a huge and fast-changing market.
Both sides have been putting up defensive walls for years.
To stay in business in China, Apple has had to set up a data center there
to store Chinese customers’ personal information. Amazon recently had
to sell equipment to its Chinese cloud services partner to comply with
new Chinese rules. Facebook and Twitter are blocked in the country;
newer American players, such as Snap, are not even trying to enter
anymore.
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