Abstract
This article analyses China’s economic and technological strategy as a deliberate attempt to move rapidly through the virtuous cycle linking technology, innovation, competitiveness, productivity and international leadership. Rather than placing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) within a fixed ideological category — whether state capitalism, adapted Leninism or techno-socialism with Chinese characteristics — the article argues that the logic guiding its practical decisions reflects a combination of basic economic principles, long-term strategic planning and the preservation of social cohesion as a foundation of political legitimacy. The historical reading of the “century of humiliation” and the collapse of the Soviet Union reinforces a central conclusion in contemporary Chinese thinking: only mastery of critical technologies and strategic links in global value chains can guarantee national rejuvenation and prevent new forms of external subordination. Starting from this premise, the article examines how China has turned industrial policy into a systemic instrument that is no longer confined to specific strategic sectors but seeks to reorganise the entire productive ecosystem. Technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and new energy systems are therefore integrated into a strategy that combines public investment, funding guidance, state-owned enterprises, public procurement and the deliberate creation of demand. Although this approach generates overcapacity, inefficiencies and financial tensions, the analysis argues that Beijing sees these as acceptable costs within a long-term geopolitical competition. The article concludes that the global impact of this strategy is already visible in the expansion of China’s manufacturing surplus, the growing competitive pressure it exerts in advanced sectors, and the deepening of international dependencies on inputs, machinery, components and capital goods. China faces considerable economic and social challenges, but this does not necessarily imply a loss of strategic power. On the contrary, two dynamics may coexist: a slowdown in domestic growth, accompanied by potentially greater internal economic and social difficulties, and the emergence of China as an increasingly formidable technological, industrial and geopolitical competitor.
