China now global leader in 90% of critical tech research: think tank

[Beijingwalker]

China now global leader in 90% of critical tech research: think tank​

China holds a wide lead in research on advanced aircraft engines, among other areas, according to the Australian Strategic Policy Institute's Critical Technology Tracker. © Reuters

SHOGO KODAMA and MASAYA KATO, Nikkei staff writers
August 29, 2024 02:33 JST

TOKYO -- China is the top research nation in the vast majority of advanced technologies, according to a new study by an Australian think tank that calls on the U.S. and its Asian allies to work together to catch up.

The government-backed Australian Strategic Policy Institute's (ASPI) Critical Technology Tracker assesses countries' research competitiveness based on the number of research paper citations in 64 technology categories. China grabbed the top spot in 57 areas, or nearly 90%, for papers released between 2019 and 2023, according to a report released Wednesday.

This represents a turnaround from the 2003-2007 period, when the U.S. led in 60 out of 64 categories, while China topped just three. For 2019-2023, the U.S. ranked first in just seven categories, including quantum computing and biotechnology, gene technologies and vaccines

In particular, China has made strides in dual-use technologies that have possible military applications. There are 24 categories classified as being at high risk of being monopolized by a country, including radar, satellite positioning and drones.

When it comes to citations related to hypersonic detection and tracking, China has a 73% share, the U.S. has 13% and the U.K. 3%. For advanced aircraft engines, China leads with 63% while the U.S. trails at 7%.

"Scientific breakthroughs and research innovations in key defense technologies are increasingly likely to occur in China," the ASPI report says.

Chinese President Xi Jinping's "Made in China 2025" initiative, announced in 2015, seeks to modernize Chinese industry and boost self-reliance in 10 critical sectors, including semiconductors and robotics.

China's goal is to become a global manufacturing powerhouse by 2049, the year of the centennial of the founding of the People's Republic.

ASPI, founded by the Australian government in 2001, looked at papers published between 2003 and 2023 that are in the top 10% in terms of citations.

With the risk of Chinese tech monopolization rising, the think tank recommends that AUKUS -- the security grouping of Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. -- work more closely with Japan and South Korea.

"In a range of technologies, such as advanced robotics and autonomous systems operation technology, combined AUKUS efforts still trail China's high-impact research output," according to the report. "Combining AUKUS efforts with those of closer partners Japan and South Korea in these areas, however, helps close the gap in research performance."

AUKUS was launched in 2021 as a counterweight to China's growing influence in the Indo-Pacific. The three countries plan to work together on artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies.

In April, defense ministers from the three AUKUS countries issued a joint statement saying they are considering cooperation with Japan.

The U.S., the U.K., and Australia see Japan as a potential partner in AI, quantum technology, electronic warfare capabilities and hypersonic weapons, among other areas. Meanwhile, South Korea, which is investing in the mass production of next-generation semiconductors, is seeking joint research opportunities in cutting-edge defense technologies.

Japan ranked among the top five in terms of 2019-2023 citations in only eight tech categories, including nuclear power and quantum sensors. South Korea ranked in the top five in 24 categories, such as semiconductor manufacturing.

 

[Beijingwalker]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1828849878736269648

 

[Beijingwalker]

After China grabs both manufacturing and technology global dominance from the west, don't know what else China will still leave for the west. An intersting time we are living now.

 

[Beijingwalker]

China has world's largest number of top 100 science, technology clusters
By Global Times
Published: Aug 28, 2024 11:53 PM

Robot Tianyi, white, stands with silver black Tiangong 1.2 MAX robots at the five-day World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing on August 22, 2024. Tianyi is 163 centimeters tall, and as a service robot it can identify emotions and interact with people. Tiangong 1.2 MAX, 173 centimeters tall, can carry heavier items, walk faster and longer compared with its previous version 1.1 PRO. Photo: VCG

For the second consecutive year, China has the largest number of the world's top 100 science and technology clusters, according to an early release from the 2024 edition of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)'s Global Innovation Index (GII) on Tuesday.

The figures reflect the nation's technology innovations on the global stage, despite the ongoing crackdown by the US.

China has 26 of the world's top 100 science and technology innovation clusters, up from 24 last year, the report said. The US follows with 20, Germany with eight, and India and South Korea with four each.

China and the US are home to the world's largest science and technology clusters, with shifts among the top 100 showing especially fast growth of innovative activity in certain emerging economies, the report said.

Tokyo and Yokohama in Japan lead as the largest global science and technology cluster, followed by Shenzhen and Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province, and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shared second place. They were followed by Beijing in third place, and Shanghai and Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province, which shared fifth place.

The GII list of science and technology clusters identifies local concentrations of world-leading science and technology activity around the globe, according to the WIPO.

The report once again highlights China's strong position in global technological innovation, experts said. "It showcased the outstanding achievements of the second-largest economy in driving technological innovation and advancing the development of technology clusters," Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Technology innovation clusters, as a crucial foundation of the national innovation ecosystem, play a significant role in driving economic development and enhancing national competitiveness, the expert said. He said that the development of China's science and technology also shows that despite the suppression of Chinese technology firm and products by certain countries such as the US, China's achievements in the field of innovation are still remarkable.

China should continue to increase investment in technological innovation, optimize the innovation environment, and promote the formation and development of more technology innovation clusters, the expert said.

China has world's largest number of top 100 science, technology clusters - Global Times

www.globaltimes.cn

 

[Beijingwalker]

China is beating the world at scientific research, think tank finds. Could monopolise 24 key techs if current trends continue​

8/30/2024 3:14 AM

Could monopolise 24 key techs if current trends continue

Think Tank the Australian Strategic Policy Institute has released an update to its Critical Technology Tracker, revealing that China leads the way in 89 percent of the technologies it tracks.

It determines a country’s performance based on the amount of high-impact research it generates – as measured by the number of publications its institutions produced in the top ten percent of cited papers in their respective fields.

For the first five years the project covers , the US held the top spot in 60 of 64 technologies, and China led in only three .

Today, China leads in 57 out of 64 technologies while the United States picks up the remaining seven.

Areas in which the US leads are quantum computing, vaccines and medical countermeasures, nuclear medicine and radiotherapy, small satellites, atomic clocks, genetic engineering, and natural language processing.

While the US and China dominate the tracker, India has made some notable inroads. It ranks among the top five countries in 45 out of 64 critical technologies – an increase from 37 in the previous year – demonstrating its growing influence and capability.

The nation has displaced the US as the second-ranked nation in biological manufacturing and distributed ledgers.

China is beating the world at scientific research, think tank finds

Could monopolise 24 key techs if current trends continue

headtopics.com

 

[Beijingwalker]

China now leads 90pc of critical tech research​

By Tom Williams on Sep 03 2024 12:08 PM

China now leads the world in around 90 per cent of critical technology research and continues to extend its lead over the United States, according to a report by government-backed thinktank the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI).

The authors of the ASPI report, Jenny Wong-Leung, Stephan Robin and Danielle Cave, said China and the US had “effectively switched places” over the past two decades, with more research now taking place in large economies in the Indo-Pacific region “led by China’s exceptional gains”.

An update to ASPI’s Critical Technology Tracker found China — which led in only three of 64 technologies (5 per cent) between 2003 and 2007 — led in 57 of those areas (89 per cent) over the past five years.

The tracker ranks countries' competitiveness based on how often they are cited in the top 10 per cent of the most highly cited research papers in each category of innovation it tracks.

China was found to have achieved leadership in five new technologies since last year’s update: quantum sensors, high-performance computing, gravitational sensors, space launch and advanced integrated circuit design, and semiconductor fabrication.

The US, which led in 94 per cent of the tracked technologies between 2003 and 2007, led in only seven areas (11 per cent) in the past five years, including quantum computing, small satellites, atomic clocks, and natural language processing — a branch of artificial intelligence.

US technology companies such as Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Meta were found to have “leading or strong positions in AI, quantum and computing technologies”, but organisations including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the US Air Force Research Laboratory slipped in the ratings, with all of the 10 top-performing institutions now in China.

The Chinese Academy of Sciences was the highest performing organisation overall, with a global lead in 31 of the 64 technologies (48 per cent).

"China has executed a dramatic step-up in research performance that other countries simply haven’t been able to match,” the authors wrote.

India has also emerged as “a key centre of global research innovation and excellence”, the researchers said, as the nation ranked in the top five countries for 45 of the 64 technologies (70 per cent), up from 37 last year.

<em>Average annual research share across the 64 technologies between 2003 and 2023. Image: ASPI</em>

China monopoly concerns​

While only China and the US currently held the lead in any of the 64 tracked technologies, ASPI researchers said China was the lead country in 10 new areas which they now categorised as being at a high risk of becoming a one-nation monopoly.

"The number of technologies classified as ‘high risk’ has jumped from 14 technologies last year to 24 now,” they wrote.

“Worryingly, the technologies newly classified as high risk include many with defence applications, such as radar, advanced aircraft engines, drones, swarming and collaborative robots, and satellite positioning and navigation.”

The authors also noted that strong research performance did not mean China would necessarily have the same dominance in making those technologies a reality.

“At times, China is ahead in high impact research because it’s actually behind in the development and commercialisation of that technology and is making major investments to try to catch up to the advances made by other countries over previous decades,” they said.

The authors said it was possible that some US research in sensitive technologies had already moved “into classified or commercial-in-confidence spaces” but argued “other countries would be wise to assume” that China’s momentum would continue.

“Some observers might argue that China’s ascendance into a research power —indeed the research power — doesn’t matter because other countries, the US in particular, remain ahead in commercialisation, design and manufacturing.

“That might be true for some technologies, but it represents a very short-term attitude.

“China, too, is making enormous investments in its manufacturing capabilities, subsidising key industries and achieving technological breakthroughs that are catching the world by surprise.”

The US and Canada have made moves to protect their local economies from China’s manufacturing power, with both imposing 100 per cent tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles.

China, meanwhile, has reportedly threatened Japan with economic retaliation if Tokyo further restricts sales and servicing of chipmaking equipment to Chinese companies.

Image: ASPI

Australia improves in some areas, drops in others​

The ASPI report found Australia had improved its research standing in some technologies over the past 21 years, but had slipped behind in others.

Australia now ranked in the top 10 countries for technologies such as AI, robotics, advanced materials and manufacturing, biotechnologies, and energy and the environment.

But the country had “slipped significantly” in all quantum technologies except for quantum sensors, biological manufacturing and some defence technologies such as autonomous underwater vehicles and satellite navigation, researchers said.

Australia was now in the top five countries in seven technologies, after ranking in the top five for nine technologies last year.

The report authors argued that AUKUS — the trilateral security partnership between Australia, the UK, and the US — was “on par with China” in some technologies such as adversarial AI, but still trailled China in areas including advanced robotics and autonomous systems.

"In some technologies, such as autonomous underwater vehicles and hypersonic detecting and tracking, China’s high-impact research lead is so pronounced that no combination of other countries can currently match it,” they said.

The authors said their findings were a reminder to governments that building technological capabilities required long-term investments.

China now leads 90pc of critical tech research

US losing its advantage, Australian thinktank says.

ia.acs.org.au