By Doug Kelly
The United States and China are currently locked in a high-stakes competition for global technology leadership, with artificial intelligence (AI) at the center. But the AI race is not just another technological competition – it’s a contest that will determine whether democratic or authoritarian values shape our digital future. The winner of this race will also earn a decades-long military and economic advantage and extensive geopolitical influence.
As China aggressively pursues AI dominance, America must leverage every tool at our disposal to maintain our technological leadership and align around policies that accelerate innovation. As former Congressman and American Edge Project Board Member Chris Carney noted in a recent op-ed, America must “focus on incentivizing innovation and promoting collaboration between the government and the tech industry. A united front is essential to counter the cyber threats we face and position the U.S. to lead the way in developing AI and the next generation of breakthrough technologies. The future of American security and economic prosperity depends on it.”
Let’s be clear about what we’re facing: China is executing a comprehensive strategy aimed at economic and national security dominance over America and the West. Its three-part plan centers on:
- Investing $1.4 trillion in core strategic technologies, with a goal of being global AI leader by 2030;
- Stealing $500 billion annually in U.S. tech and trade secrets; and
- Attempting to increase global dependency on Chinese technology to gain global economic and geopolitical leverage.
China is also leveraging cyberattacks to steal American intellectual property and technology capabilities, including in AI developments. Representative Carney’s recent op-ed detailed how “China’s escalating cyber aggression, amplified by rapid advancements in AI, is dramatically raising the stakes in the global cybersecurity arena.” At a cybersecurity conference, Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) Director Christopher Wray also sounded the alarm on China’s technological theft saying, “[n]ation-state adversaries, particularly China, pose a significant threat to American companies and national security by stealing our AI technology and data to advance their own AI programs and enable foreign influence campaigns.” He noted, “China already has a bigger hacking program than every other major nation combined,” highlighting how they are hacking every industry “from biotech to aviation, to advanced technologies like AI, to different forms of healthcare and agriculture—to steal our intellectual property, technology, and research.”
AI will have a transformative impact, including in national and economic security, healthcare, energy and other strategic fields and industries. It will matter greatly what set of values – democratic or authoritarian – underpin this innovation. We cannot unilaterally cede the playing field and let China prevail.
To maintain our leadership position in technology generally and AI specifically, we need to ensure domestic companies – who are responsive to an American, democratic value system – are leading in the development of diverse AI approaches, including both closed- and open-source. This is about maximizing our innovative potential through every available channel. If we fail to lead in any facets of this critical and emerging technology, we risk handing China an edge that the United States will likely never recover.
U.S. AI innovation is pivotal to countering China’s tech ambitions and safeguarding U.S. leadership. In September, a Chinese tech firm released over 100 open-source models in 29 languages, further expanding its global reach and influence. This summer The New York Times also reported that “China is closing the AI gap with the United States” and unveiling “AI technologies that rival leading American systems.” Developing and deploying U.S. AI can help maintain our influence, particularly in developing nations across Africa, South America, and Asia that China is targeting, as well as among price-sensitive companies in Europe that would consider switching to Chinese-made technology if costs associated with U.S. technology price us out of the marketplace.
Further, the American public understands the importance of Western tech leadership. A recent survey by the American Edge Project found U.S. and European voters are united in their concerns over the technological threats posed by China and Russia, with eight-in-10 wanting Western leaders to cooperate to leverage technology’s economic and national security benefits. This polling also shows there is agreement that open-source AI strengthens core values and tech innovations, underscoring the need for cooperation across the Western alliance to ensure like-minded nations remain the lead innovators in a diversity of AI models.
By encouraging both open- or closed-source AI models, by partnering with America’s private sector innovators, and coordinating with our overseas allies, the U.S. government can deploy our soft power or “digital diplomacy” that can ensure that democratic AI, rather than authoritarian AI, becomes the global standard.
The bottom line: This technological race will determine far more than market dominance. Technology is not just another sector of our economy – it’s the very backbone of our collective national security, economic prosperity, and our values. As China promotes its vision of authoritarian AI, the United States must present a clear alternative that embodies freedom, innovation, and opportunity.
It matters greatly which country builds the future. Our policymakers must act with urgency now to accelerate AI innovation so that the world’s technological future is American-made and that the values of freedom, democracy, and opportunity are embedded into technological landscape of tomorrow.
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