A sustainable way to goal

China's new quality productive forces are strategic responses to changes in the international environment where the US is adopting various strategies to contain it

Strategic competition between the United States and China in technologies and industries is becoming increasingly fierce, particularly in areas of technological advancement and global market dominance. Both countries are making significant investments, especially in the fields of semiconductors, 5G technology, new energy and artificial intelligence.

From a macro perspective, the US has employed multiple tactics, including investment controls, export restrictions, regulatory mechanisms, and legislation, to curb China's technological progress in three key areas: AI governance, the chip race, and data regulations. Under the guise of national sovereignty and security, the US is aggressively obstructing China's technological development. Aiming to maintain its technological hegemony and market dominance, the US has adopted various strategies to contain China. In response, China has been striving to alter the competitive landscape through sustained investment and rapid growth. Under the influence of globalization, this complex relationship that spans the economic, political and security dimensions, is expected to persist in the long term, with profound implications for global technological innovation and industrial development.

In this context, the development of China's new quality productive forces is not only an internal necessity for domestic growth but also a strategic response to changes in the international environment. Faced with increasing external risks, such as the "technology war" and "decoupling" from Western countries, or some core technologies being restricted with profound adjustments of the global industry and supply chains, China must accelerate the development of indigenous technologies to reduce its reliance on foreign high-tech products and technologies.

Thus, new quality productive forces integrate innovative technological elements to drive industrial upgrading and optimize economic structures, which offer China robust support in safeguarding its interests in the global technological competition and enhance its international influence. As a core driving force in the process of Chinese modernization, new quality productive forces are led by innovation, pushing industries and the economy toward higher efficiency, more environment-friendly and more intelligent development. It emphasizes the reallocation and optimization of resources for technological innovation and high-quality development, aiming not only for maximum economic benefit but also for societal and environmental sustainability.

Building the strategic pathway for developing China's new quality productive forces is foundational to this effort.

First, promoting deep integration between the digital and real economies. New quality productive forces, based on the concept that science and technology are the primary productive forces, focus on key, cutting-edge, innovative and modern engineering technologies. Through breakthroughs in critical and disruptive innovations — such as big data, AI, quantum computing, and eco-friendly technologies — these forces can harness new momentum for the Chinese path to modernization via independent and controllable core technologies. Disruptive technologies and front-line innovations are vital sources of new quality productive forces, fostering new industries, models and dynamics. The deep integration of the digital and real economies is particularly crucial. Such integration not only promotes higher efficiency and sustainability in China's economic development, but also creates new growth points and development opportunities within the global economy.

Specifically, it can be achieved through two key approaches: The first is offering incentives such as research funding, tax relief and innovation subsidies to support the development and application of critical digital technologies. Then, it is necessary to establish industry-universities-research-application platforms to facilitate the smooth and efficient transformation of scientific and technological achievements into actual productivity.

Second, advance high-level opening-up. The cultivation and development of new quality productive forces are essential for advancing Chinese modernization. Especially in the digital economy era, global technological innovation and industrial transformation are increasingly dynamic. High-level, comprehensive opening-up is both a necessary path for China to integrate itself into the international markets and enhance competitiveness and a strategic choice for achieving high-quality development. While enabling growth, the Chinese path to modernization also bears the shared responsibility of shaping the global industrial division of labor and trade rules through the substantial implications of new quality productive forces.

High-level opening-up, crucial to developing new quality productive forces, not only involves innovative development of various elements that make up these forces but also requires adaptive adjustments in institutional reform, system evolution and the restructuring of production relations. Legal protections must be strengthened to ensure successful opening-up in this process, including enhancing intellectual property protection, improving the legal framework for foreign investment, and establishing and refining dispute resolution mechanisms for foreign enterprises.

Third, intensify talent development efforts. The development of new quality productive forces requires systematic, long-term support from a pool of innovative talents. China must adopt more inclusive and outward talent policies to attract high-end global tech talents and teams for work and exchange within the country.

We should strengthen basic and vocational education, which is the foundation of talent development. China's education system should continue to undergo reforms, with a greater emphasis on fostering innovative thinking and practical skills through project-based, inquiry-driven and problem-solving teaching methods.

And new mechanisms need to be created to deeply integrate higher education with industries. While China boasts world-class universities and research institutions, sometimes there is a disconnect between academic research and industry needs. Bridging this gap requires deeper development of university-enterprise cooperation models.

Last but not least, international cooperation and exchanges should be enhanced by strengthening partnerships with leading global universities and research institutions. Shared use of research facilities and data resources, and the accelerated international flow of technological innovations and knowledge will help elevate China's presence and influence in the global technology innovation ecosystem.

Zhu Feng is the dean of the School of International Studies at Nanjing University. Ling Banghao is an assistant research fellow of Collaborative Innovation Center of South China Sea Studies at Nanjing University. The authors contributed this article to China Watch, a think tank powered by China Daily. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

Contact the editor at editor@chinawatch.cn.