The president and vice chairman of Microsoft warned that the West should not think that China is lagging behind the United States and Europe in technological development.
Tensions in Sino-US relations over the past few years have centered on the two countries’ struggle for technological supremacy, culminating in a series of export controls on key technologies. Late last year, China’s Huawei surprised the market by releasing a smartphone with download speeds associated with 5G. spark speculation An apparent chip breakthrough that defies U.S. technology sanctions.
Speaking at the Web Summit technology conference in Lisbon, Portugal, on Tuesday, Microsoft’s Brad Smith told CNBC that “in many ways,” China is close to or even catching up technologically.
“Frankly, I think one of the dangers is that people who don’t go to China often think they’re behind,” he told CNBC’s Karen Tso. “But when you go there, you’re impressed with what they’ve done.”
He predicted that in the distant future, Chinese and American companies will compete in technology, and urged American and European companies to cooperate to develop the economy and bring new advancements such as artificial intelligence to the rest of the world.
Microsoft CEO Brad Smith attends a conference at the Westin Palace Hotel in Madrid, Spain on May 20, 2022.
Cesaro de Luca | European Press | Getty Images
Microsoft has been operating in China since 1992. According to the company’s websiteIncluding through its largest research and development center outside the United States, Microsoft Chief Executive Satya Nadella said last year that the company is not focusing on China as a domestic market, but rather on providing services to Chinese companies and in The local influence is more evident than with American companies.
Asked about trade and technology transfers — or the flow of data, designs or innovations — with China as Washington transitions between the administrations of current U.S. leader Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump. It’s too early for Smith to know if things will get more challenging.
“The fact is, as an American technology company, we can only do business in China if we provide services that the Chinese government wants us to provide there, and the U.S. government wants us to bring them to China,” he added. In some cases they would consider building a data center to support Mercedes, Siemens, Starbucks or General Motors – consumer services may seem to have a certain level of comfort, but that’s not the case.
He predicts that we will live in a world where some technology will move to China, and it will not be the technology companies that decide.
—CNBC’s Jordan Novet contributed to this article.
