The past year has offered some old lessons about great-power competition. But it also introduced some new ones about how technology is changing the strategic terrain.
There is no longer any doubt about the challenge that China, Russia and other authoritarian regimes pose to international rule of law, respect for sovereignty, democratic principles and free people. These threats have grown as China and Russia have harnessed new technologies to surveil populations, manipulate information, and control data flows. They are setting an example for how authoritarians can further clamp down on freedom of thought, expression and association.
Rising geopolitical tensions have coincided with growing encroachments by disruptive technologies into all aspects of public and private life. The implications for 2023 and beyond are clear: the technology platforms of the future are the new terrain of strategic competition. The United States therefore has a core interest in making sure that these technologies are designed, built, fielded and governed by democracies.