China's Strategy of Industrial Abundance: an Imperial Banquet, not Molecular Gastronomy
Deep Dives
Explore related topics with these Wikipedia articles, rewritten for enjoyable reading:
-
Import substitution industrialization
14 min read
The article discusses China's strategy of building a 'complete industrial system' - understanding the historical theory and practice of import substitution industrialization provides essential context for how nations have attempted to develop self-sufficient industrial bases, and how China's approach differs from or builds upon earlier models in Latin America and East Asia.
-
Made in China 2025
10 min read
While the excerpt doesn't explicitly name this policy, the discussion of China's systematic approach to industrial capacity and technological self-sufficiency directly relates to this strategic plan. Understanding the specific targets and controversies around Made in China 2025 provides concrete context for the theoretical frameworks discussed in the article.
Forming part of what has been described by Dan Wang in his recent book as an “engineering state”, the Chinese policy establishment often lets the term “system” do the conceptual heavy lifting: building a complete “industrial system”, developing a “national innovation system” and strengthening “systemic capacity”. In an increasingly orthodox narrative that is perhaps best exemplified by the economist Lu Feng’s (路风) concept of the “complete industrial system”, technological innovation is understood not primarily as the product of nimble minds or freewheeling vision, but as the natural outgrowth of a holistic system in which supply- and demand-side inputs are calibrated for its emergence.
Echoing the previously covered analysis by public policy specialist Huang Ping (黄平) that China’s advantage in AI derives from its vast “systemic capacity” and pool of industrial demand, management theorist Sun Xi (孙喜) presents a lucid exposition here of how such an industrial system operates—theoreticall…
This excerpt is provided for preview purposes. Full article content is available on the original publication.