Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology

MTL Seminar Series
Chris Miller, Tufts University

Abstract

Today, military, economic, and geopolitical power are built on a foundation of computer chips. Virtually everything—from missiles to microwaves, smartphones to the stock market—runs on chips. Until recently, America designed and built the most advanced chips and used its control over computing power to maintain its lead as the world's leading superpower. Now, America's edge is slipping, undermined by competitors in Taiwan, Korea, Europe, and, above all, China. Today, China, which spends more money each year importing chips than it spends importing oil, is pouring billions into a chip-building initiative to catch up to the US, and using this to build a military that threatens Taiwan, the beating heart of the digital world. At stake is America's military superiority and economic prosperity.