HONG KONG – Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Wednesday pushed back against concerns over Beijing’s rapid technological progress, portraying it as a global benefit rather than a source of risk.
Li also argued that extensive government subsidies were not the key driver behind the swift expansion of China’s high-tech sectors. His comments come as Western officials increasingly accuse Beijing of giving domestic industries — from artificial intelligence to electric vehicles — an unfair advantage through state backing.
China’s second-highest-ranking leader made the remarks during an address at the opening plenary of the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions, widely known as “Summer Davos,” which is being held this week in Dalian, a coastal city in northeastern China.
Li recognized that unease has been building internationally over China’s advances in technology, with some critics invoking the phrase “China Shock 2.0” to describe what they view as a high-tech surge that could challenge many developed economies.
He said the trend should instead be understood as “China Opportunity 2.0.”
“From the global development perspective, ‘China Opportunity 2.0’ means there’ll be broader access to advanced technologies and more widely shared benefits,” Li said.
“China’s emerging technologies and products are bringing to the world not shocks, but opportunities,” he added. “Not threats, but empowerment.”
China’s progress in technology and its rising exports of electric vehicles, solar panels, semiconductors, batteries, artificial intelligence tools and robotics have delivered lower-cost choices to global buyers. At the same time, they have drawn pushback from governments worried about problems such as excess supply, prompting some to adopt protectionist policies.
Li also dismissed claims that the rise of China’s high-tech sectors was because of massive government subsidies.
U.S. and European policymakers have raised worries over Chinese state subsidies creating unfairness to their industries, while a June report by the 38-country Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, said huge state subsidies, including those in China, can distort global markets and create unfair competitive advantages.
“There are some people who say that Chinese products are competitive mainly because the Chinese government’s subsidies,” Li said in his speech. “That’s not true. The Chinese government is not that wealthy.”
China’s large domestic market, which allows the mass and fast deployment of new technologies among its population of 1.4 billion, and huge corporate investments are among the key factors in its robust tech advancements, he said.
Li also name-checked Chinese tech giant Huawei, which has faced Western restrictions, and robotics company Unitree, both of which have risen quickly in size and market share, as examples of China’s innovation success.
An expansion earlier this month of the Pentagon’s list of Chinese military-linked companies included Unitree, preventing the firm from landing U.S. defense contracts. The list also includes Huawei.
___
Associated Press video producer Wayne Zhang in Beijing contributed to this report.
