What China’s New Phone Means For America

Written by Jack Elbaum

What’s happening: Chinese company Huawei Technologies just released a new smartphone with a technological breakthrough — it likely features a highly advanced 7-nanometer 5G chip. Following the release, China banned some government officials from using Apple’s iPhone.

• Why it matters: Last year, the U.S. began restricting China’s access to advanced U.S. chips in order to slow the country’s ramped-up tech development efforts. If such a phone has been successfully developed, the sanctions on China failed.

Washington panics: Because the new phone includes technology the U.S. did not want China to get a hold of, “alarm bells” were set off in Washington. House Republicans called for more tough action against China.

• What’s next? Washington can respond by cutting China’s access to even more critical technology. That would worsen tensions amid Biden’s recent efforts of deescalating and easing trade tensions. Still, China’s new tech developments could derail those efforts.

Zoom out: America's concern over China's advancements in smartphone technology isn't just about phones; it's a proxy for the geopolitical battle over technological and military supremacy. At the heart of advanced phones are chips critical for advancing artificial intelligence (AI) with military applications.