<No.739> |
Silicon Valley Skeptical of Washington's China Concerns
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They call it the Trump effect.
Increased government scrutiny
of Chinese investments
in Silicon Valley
has meant
some deals are not getting done.
Some aren't even considered.
Startups are even declining Chinese investment.
After years of growing ties
between China and Silicon Valley,
the U.S. tech capital is caught
between Beijing and Washington
in the competition
to create the next generation of communication technologies.
"China's innovation efforts are broad and deep.
China wants to be a global innovation leader
and is doing all that it can legally and illegally
to achieve its goals."
The U.S. says
those methods include massive cyber-hacking campaigns
to steal corporate secrets,
forced technology transfers
to Chinese partners,
and government policies
that reward intellectual property theft.
The U.S. government wants new barriers up
because it believes
some technologies,
such as artificial intelligence and robotics,
are important
to national security.
But many in the tech industry see risk
in new restrictions.
"I think
we should be open and sharing
and both countries benefit so much
by having a very open communication lane there.
I believe
we have a problem
that we are putting up barriers
where they don't benefit us."
Chinese companies are already racing
to build 5G wireless communication networks
around the world,
which the U.S. says risks
giving Beijing enormous opportunities
for electronic surveillance.
While Washington wants to make sure
the U.S. wins the technology race,
Silicon Valley worries
its culture of open communication is at stake.
Michelle Quinn, VOA News, San Francisco
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