Cars, chips, AI, quantum computing, and what next?

The 863 Plan is still alive. China is desperate to nurture semiconductor technology and its ecosystems.

HAN WOO-DUKThe author is a senior reporter of the China Lab. In 1908, Henry Ford launched the conveyor assembled car “T Model.” Since then, the United States has maintained its position as the world’s largest automobile producer.

This myth was shattered in 2009. That year, the U.S. had to surrender its position as the “100-year-old automobile kingdom” to China. Last year, China produced about 27 million cars, beating the U.S., which produced 10 million cars, by a wide margin.

But China is still not an automobile “powerhouse,” with its technology lagging behind its Western competitors. But there is another twist. In the era of electric vehicles (EV), China is rising as the most powerful and largest car producer.

It overwhelms the U.S. in terms of production numbers and EV technology. Thanks to a strong EV industry, China has become the largest automobile exporter in the world, beating Japan in the first quarter.

Looking back, it was a 20-year “race.” In 2001, China included electric vehicles in the “863 Plan,” a national high-tech development program. While China was behind the U.S. for gasoline cars, it wanted to leap ahead in electric engines. Her strategy is to “change the game and win.”

The 863 Plan was so named because it was launched in March 1986. The state will select strategic technologies and intensively support related companies and research institutes, including universities. BYD, a leading Chinese EV company, was selected for the program in 2012.

The “863 Plan” was integrated into the “National Key R&D Plan” along with the “973 Plan,” a fundamental science development program, in 2016. But the structure did not change. The central government selects core strategic technologies, concentrate resources, and connect companies with research institutes. If necessary, foreign companies will be driven out to protect Chinese companies, as seen in the expulsion of Korean battery companies from China in 2016.

This is not just for electric cars. Astronautics, high-speed railways, 5G communication, and supercomputers have jumped to world-class levels via the “863 platform.” Target technologies for development are evolving to AI, new energy, new materials, and quantum computing. China secretly and meticulously develops strategic technologies despite the economic crisis.

In a recent interview with CNN, current Ford Motor Chairman Bill Ford, the grandson of Henry Ford, sounded a warning about the arrival of Chinese electric vehicles in America. He regretted the lack of preparation for the invasion. It sounds like a 100-year-old stronghold is falling apart.

The 863 Plan is still alive. China is desperate to nurture semiconductor technology and its ecosystems. They are still trying to turn the tables in the chip field.