What a Technology Cold War Could Look Like

If a technology cold war does come to pass, it would significantly alter existing technology landscape, dismantle global supply chains, and cleave off the global trade network that has underpinned China’s rise as a global economic power.

Workers build smartphone chip component circuits at a factory in Dongguan City, Guangdong Province, China, on May 8, 2017. Nicolas Asforui/AFP/Getty Images

News Analysis

During the Cold War, around half of the world ran on the technologies, machinery, and political ideologies developed by the Soviet Union. The other half—the free world—adopted those of the United States and its allies.