Inside the US–China decoupling: What’s really at stake (AI, rare earths, Taiwan, trade)

Azeem Azhar's Exponential View

In this episode, I speak with Jordan Schneider, creator of Chinatalk, to explore the new phase of US–China competition. Both countries are using trade policy, export controls and industrial strategy to shift the balance of global power. Yet, their economies remain tightly bound.

We cover:

(01:34) The US and China’s decoupling

(07:28) Why attempts to control China backfired

(08:51) Understanding the Oct. 9th rare Earth rules

(11:27) The modern iteration of Chinese communism

(14:23) Is decoupling a strategy to avoid weaponization?

(16:12) US leadership might be shooting from the hip

(19:22) Are system changes inherently messy?

(21:27) “Vibe-based” sovereignty

(26:03) AI incumbents aren’t entrenched—yet

(29:07) Why China remains focused on AI deployment

(32:45) The different versions of tech-accelerationism

(33:37) How will societies withstand rapid change?

(36:54) What the West can learn from China

(40:10) Where China is most misunderstood

(43:14) Imagining an improved US-China relationship

Where to find Jordan:

• Substack: https://substack.com/@chinatalk
• YouTube: @ChinaTalkMedia
• Linkedin: / jorschneider
• X: https://x.com/jordanschnyc

Where to find me:

• Substack: https://www.exponentialview.co/
• Website: https://www.azeemazhar.com/
• LinkedIn:/ azhar
• X: https://x.com/azeem

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Production and research: Chantal Smith, Hannah Petrovic and Marija Gavrilov.

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