The issue is not clear-cut. Many foreign firms have been able to thrive in the lucrative Chinese market without giving up their most prized technology. In areas such as 5G networks and artificial intelligence (AI), Chinese technology is already superior to the Western equivalents.
SINGAPORE (July 22): Microchips, smartphone-testing robotic arms, wind turbines, solar cells, experimental glass made from crushed diamonds, Star Wars toys, chemical formulae for food colouring, data storage systems, firewall software — these are just some of the things Chinese companies have been accused of stealing from their Western counterparts.
As long ago as 1992, the George H W Bush administration persuaded the Chinese government to create laws to protect US companies’ intellectual property (IP). But copyright piracy remained rife and, over the last two decades, Chinese appropriation of Western innovations has become a major geopolitical issue. It is one of the key sticking points in the current trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing.
