午夜剧场

This book provides a broad overview of Chinese technology and the U.S.-China technological hegemony struggle, based on what I saw and heard as the Beijing correspondent for the Asahi Shimbun from April 2017 to August 2020.

I believe the three and a half years I spent in China were a major turning point, not only in modern Chinese history but also in the history of U.S.-China relations since the Nixon Shock.

President Xi Jinping consolidated political power through the anti-corruption campaign and strengthened dictatorial rule. Driven by an innovation-led digital economy, the economy grew steadily despite a slowdown. The expansion of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) reflected China's intention to lead the international order. The break from the "Tao Guang Yang Hui" (hide your strength and bide your time) policy, said to have been proposed by Deng Xiaoping, became clear.

Meanwhile, in the United States, Mr. Trump took office as president and intensified his confrontational stance toward China's challenge to U.S. hegemony. He launched successive offensives against China, including trade friction involving retaliatory tariffs and the technological hegemony struggle that this book focuses on. Although Mr. Biden took over as U.S. President in January 2021, the conflict between the U.S. and China continues to deepen, with a tougher stance being taken on human rights. Our country is required to have the wisdom to survive shrewdly amidst the conflict between these two nations.

Clarity is important for a paperback (Shinsho), and there were some episodes I had to cut with a heavy heart. However, if there is one thing that differentiates this book, I believe it is the inclusion of many voices from business leaders. It was a great asset for me as an author to be able to directly interview key figures such as Ren Zhengfei of Huawei, Jack Ma of Alibaba Group, Morris Chang of Taiwan's TSMC (a key player in the global semiconductor industry), and Richard Chang, a pioneer in the Chinese semiconductor industry.

I was also able to include the raw voices of young entrepreneurs from startup companies leading innovation. This has been well-received even by experts living in China who know the country inside out.

The publication of this book represents a milestone in my own research on China, which I have been working on since my time as a student at 午夜剧场. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Professor Emeritus Ryosei Kokubun, who continues to provide me with guidance from time to time.

Naoyuki Fukuda

Asahi Shinsho

272 pages, 935 yen (tax included)

*Affiliations and titles are as of the time of publication.