Western executives say China has moved from low-wage, subsidy-led manufacturing to highly automated 'dark factories' staffed by few people and many robots. That automation, combined with a large pool of engineers, is reshaping cost, speed, and quality curves in EVs and other hardware.
— If manufacturing advantage rests on automation and engineering capacity, Western industrial policy must pivot from wage/protection debates to robotics, talent, and factory modernization.
EditorDavid
2026.01.11
62% relevant
The article’s description of China building first‑of‑a‑kind sCO2 units because it 'can afford to learn by doing' connects to the existing idea that China uses scale, factory modernization, and rapid iteration to field novel industrial hardware—Chaotan One fits that pattern and should be assessed in the same strategic frame.
BeauHD
2025.10.16
100% relevant
Andrew Forrest: 'There are no people — everything is robotic,' and IFR figures showing China’s robot deployments dwarf the US/EU.
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