China, US are in race to connect science with industry. India must catch up, Pg13

Key Highlights:

• China aims to become the world's leading science power, driven by President Xi Jinping's call to mobilize "new quality productive forces" focused on innovation.
• The United States is also reorienting its science policy, as outlined in "A Science: A New Golden Age," to reintegrate innovation with manufacturing.
• Both nations view Artificial Intelligence (AI) as central to accelerating discovery, transforming industry, and gaining geopolitical advantage.
• India's R&D expenditure stands at 0.64% of GDP, significantly lower than China's 2.8% and the US's 3.5%.
• India faces challenges in private sector investment in science and the reform of its scientific institutions.

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Detailed Insights:

• China's strategy involves diffusing AI across its physical economy, leveraging its large manufacturing base to move from technology adaptation to original discovery.
• The US seeks to overcome its weakness in converting discoveries into production, aiming to reconnect its strong innovation ecosystem with manufacturing capabilities.
• The global competition is centered on building effective ecosystems that connect universities, laboratories, entrepreneurs, finance, and industry.
• Historically, Indian private capital, exemplified by Jamsetji Tata and the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, played a significant role in establishing key scientific institutions like the Indian Institute of Science and the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.
• India's reform era, unlike China's, did not include a comparable overhaul of its scientific institutions, leading to bureaucratization.
• India needs to deepen global scientific cooperation while simultaneously building domestic research, industrial, and institutional capacity.

Key Concepts Involved:

• New Quality Productive Forces: A Chinese economic concept emphasizing innovation, advanced technology, and high-quality development over traditional growth drivers.
• Technological Sovereignty: A nation's ability to develop, control, and use its own technology, reducing dependence on foreign entities.
• Scientific Temper: A rational and objective way of thinking, characterized by inquiry, evidence-based reasoning, and a rejection of dogma, as promoted in India's constitution.