Seminar | China, the U.S. and the age of technology wars
Aula Magna Lepschy, DEI
08.05.2023
Scientific coordinators: David Burigana, Alessandro Paccagnella, University of Padua.
Within the cycle of seminars planned for the course "Microelectronics and globalization" (Proff. Burigana - Paccagnella)
CHINA, THE U.S. AND THE AGE OF TECHNOLOGY WARS
By Dr. Alessandro Aresu, currently chief of technical staff at the Ministry of University and Research, where he supervises the main investments in basic and applied research by Italy, as well as the Horizon Europe program. The seminar will be hel at Aula Magna Lepschy (DEI), on Monday, May 8, at 2.30 pm.
ABSTRACT
Technology has emerged as the key area of US-China competition, particularly since 2015 with the Made in China 2025 plan. Competition in semiconductors and clean tech, after the U.S. Chips & Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, has attracted the attention of the general public and policymakers. Political tension in semiconductors is not new, considering U.S. policy vis-à-vis Japan in the 1980s, which included tariffs and foreign investment screening. However, the sophistication of today’s value chains, coupled with the role of China in global manufacturing and the specific role of Taiwan in semiconductor manufacturing, present a unique environment. In this context, the driver of market success and the driver of national security often clash. As countries and regions look more closely to the semiconductor industry, its geopolitical relevance is likely to increase, as well as the use of industrial policy and export controls in cleantech.
THE SPEAKER
Alessandro Aresu is a geopolitical expert and a policy adviser. As an analyst, he has been working and writing for “Limes”, Italy’s leading journal of geopolitics, since 2005. For Limes and other journals, he has written more than 100 essays, particularly on economic intelligence, economic security, the geopolitics of technology and export controls, as well as long studies of leading global technology companies, such as TSMC and DeepMind. He is one of the main Italian experts on foreign investment screening (so-called “golden power”).
Since 2005, he has been writing articles on geopolitics and international economics for several Italian media. He is currently an Italian editor of the European project “Le Grand Continent”, where he has published essays in Italian, French and Spanish and where he is co-editor of the series on political capitalism. Alessandro lectures at several universities and schools and he is member of the scientific committee of Biennale Tecnologia, the technology festival at Politecnico di Torino.
In 2020, he was part of the U.S. IVLP program on 5G. In 2023, he will be also co-curator of the Venice festival on “Globalization after Globalization”. Alessandro has a background in Philosophy of law, and he is the author and editor of many books. In 2018, il Mulino has published his book on Italy’s national interest, written with an Italian diplomat. In 2020, La Nave di Teseo has published his book on political capitalism and technology competition in the face of U.S.-China relations. In 2022, Luiss University Press has published his book on the new space race, co-authored with a venture capital expert. In November 2022, Feltrinelli has published his book on U.S.-China competition in global supply chains, particularly semiconductors and batteries.
From March 2021 to October 2022, he has been counselor to Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, advising the government on the national recovery plan, on industrial policy and technology. He is currently chief of technical staff at the Ministry of University and Research, where he supervises the main investments in basic and applied research by Italy, as well as the Horizon Europe program.
