Tech Diplomacy Now: What Was Inside the Chinese Spy Balloon? U.S. Technology
Two years ago, a Chinese Spy Balloon drifted across the United States. This week, we discovered its contents.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Tech Diplomacy Updates
Top News of the Week
Latest News
Technology Strategy and Policy
Artificial Intelligence
Telecommunications Networks and Infrastructure
Critical Minerals
Synthetic Biology
Quantum
Advanced Aerospace Technology
Semiconductors and Microelectronics
Energy and Climate
Opinion and Commentary
The Last Word
Krach Institute Hosts Ukrainian Tech Leaders
The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue brought together a delegation of Ukrainian tech leaders and several members of our Global Trusted Tech Network, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Deloitte, Ericsson, IronGate Capital Advisors, and Purdue Applied Research Institute to discuss Ukraine’s economic resilience, its embrace of trusted technologies, and future reconstruction efforts.
Shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Purdue University launched the Ukrainian Scholars Initiative to help faculty and PhD students whose academic pursuits have been derailed by the war. It is one of the first, largest and most ambitious of any such university-led programs in the United States.
We are grateful to our partner StrategEast for organizing the visit.
Top News of the Week – What Was Inside the Chinese Spy Balloon? U.S. Technology
Two years ago, we watched as a Chinese Spy Balloon slowly drifted across the United States from Alaska to where it was shot down just off the coast of South Carolina. Federal officials recovered the payload—a 10-foot container with stabilizers measuring 30-feet—but stayed silent over what was found inside. This week, Newsweek reports on what was found inside, including sensitive technology from five U.S. companies. This provides further proof that the controls put in place to prevent the Chinese military and intelligence services from accessing advanced technology are failing.
Key Points:
Components from Iridium, Texas Instruments, Omega Engineering, Amphenol All Sensors Corporation, and Onsemi were found inside the Spy Balloon’s payload according to a report seen by Newsweek.
More on Background:
Chinese Spy Balloon was Packed with American Tech – Newsweek, February 10, 2025
Bizarre twist in Chinese spy balloon saga as its contents are finally revealed – Daily Mail, February 10, 2025
Chinese spy balloon used a US internet provider to navigate America, report says – Business Insider, December 30, 2023
VIDEO – One-on-one with the NORAD commander months after Chinese spy balloon incident – NBC News, December 22, 2023
What’s Behind the Chinese Spy Balloon – The New Yorker, February 18, 2023
Latest News
JD Vance rails against ‘excessive’ AI regulation in a rebuke to Europe at the Paris AI summit – AP, February 11, 2025 | VIDEO
China’s Strategy in Trade War: Threaten U.S. Tech Companies – WSJ, February 9, 2025
China Weighs Probe Into Apple’s App Store Fees, Practices – Bloomberg, February 5, 2025
DeepSeek might not be as disruptive as claimed, firm reportedly has 50,000 Nvidia GPUs and spent $1.6 billion on buildouts – Tom’s Hardware, February 2, 2025
DeepSeek’s Safety Guardrails Failed Every Test Researchers Threw at Its AI Chatbot – Wired, January 31, 2025
DeepSeek’s Popular AI App Is Explicitly Sending US Data to China – Wired, January 27, 2025
Technology Strategy and Policy
Why Trump Wants to Close a Trade Exemption for China – WSJ, February 7, 2025
DeepSeek's Lesson: America Needs Smarter Export Controls – RAND, February 5, 2025
Pax Technica Is Over: The world’s pariah states are building their most lethal weapons using Western electronics – Foreign Policy, February 4, 2025
What DeepSeek Revealed About the Future of U.S.-China Competition – Foreign Policy, February 3, 2025
Manufacturing Towns Hit by the ‘China Shock’ Bounced Back. The Workers Didn’t. – WSJ, February 3, 2025
Trump’s Moves to Modernize U.S. Technology Policy – CSIS, January 27, 2025
Artificial Intelligence
EU Sets Out $200 Billion AI Spending Plan in Bid to Catch Up With U.S., China – WSJ, February 11, 2025
New York State says app raises serious security and censorship concerns – WSJ, February 10, 2025
What DeepSeek’s Success Says About China’s Ability to Nurture Talent – NYTs, February 10, 2025
Coaxing Dangerous Information From DeepSeek Is Easier Than With Other AIs – WSJ, February 8, 2025
As US and China dominate AI race, where is Europe’s answer to DeepSeek and ChatGPT? – SCMP, February 7, 2025
China’s chip firms embrace DeepSeek in AI self-sufficiency drive – SCMP, February 5, 2025
DeepSeek Jailbreak Reveals Its Entire System Prompt – Dark Reading, February 1, 2025
Telecommunications Networks and Infrastructure
Trump wants a TikTok deal. China may pull the plug. – Washington Post, February 5, 2025
Trump Taps Critic of Broadband Expansion Plan to Oversee Program – Bloomberg, February 4, 2025
India axes import tax on some smartphone parts in boost to Apple, Xiaomi – Reuters, February 1, 2025
Vodafone makes ‘world’s first’ satellite video call from a regular phone ahead of 2025 rollout – The Verge, January 30, 2025
CISA director says threat hunters spotted Salt Typhoon on federal networks before telco compromises – CyberScoop, January 15, 2025
Critical Minerals
“Today we have agreed on TRUST, i.e. Transforming Relationship Utilizing Strategic Technology. Under this, emphasis will be laid on creating strong supply chains of critical minerals, advanced materials and pharmaceuticals. It has also been decided to launch a recovery and processing initiative for strategic minerals like lithium and rare earth.” – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his joint-press conference with President Trump, February 13, 2025
What are the five critical metal exports restricted by China? – Reuters, February 4, 2025
Bolivia’s Lithium Window Is Closing Rapidly – RealClearWorld, February 3, 2025
Beijing-backed lending boosts China’s dominance in clean energy minerals – FT, January 29, 2025
In mineral sands, Australian rare earth ambitions mingle with China's interests – Nikkei Asia, January 29, 2025
Synthetic Biology
DeepSeek Offers Bioweapon, Self-Harm Information – WSJ, February 8, 2025
The Drug Industry Is Having Its Own DeepSeek Moment – WSJ, February 7, 2025
Engineering Tomorrow: DARPA’s Push into the Frontier of Synthetic Biology – SynBioBeta, February 4, 2025
Engineering Roots for Climate-Resilient Crops – SynBioBeta, January 28, 2025
Quantum
Oxford scientists achieve teleportation with quantum supercomputer – The Independent, February 10, 2025
DARPA continues quest to validate quantum computing utility – Defense News, February 7, 2025
Japan Plans to Curb Exports of Chips, Quantum-Computing Tech – Bloomberg, January 31, 2025
Advanced Aerospace Technology
Apple Satellite Partner Inks C$1.1 Billion Deal To Make Satellites & Likely Take On SpaceX’s Starlink – WCCFTech, February 10, 2025
MEASAT partners with SPACESAIL to advance LEO satellite services – SatNews, February 9, 2025
SKY Perfect JSAT is the customer behind Planet’s $230 million LEO order – SpaceNews, February 5, 2025
Ontario Cancels Starlink Deal, Bars US Firms from Government Contracts – Financial Post, February 3, 2025
Semiconductors and Microelectronics
Chinese chip champion’s ‘snowballing’ growth threatens Korean dominance – FT, February 10, 2025
U.S. chip curbs hit China harder than expected as TSMC treads carefully – Nikkei Asia, February 8, 2025
Japan tightens chipmaking export controls amid US-China tech tensions – Tom’s Hardware, February 3, 2025
Sens. Warren and Hawley call for tougher chip export bans to stymie Chinese AI – Washington Post, February 3, 2025
Everyone’s Rattled by the Rise of DeepSeek—Except Nvidia, Which Enabled It – WSJ, February 2, 2025
Energy and Climate
Indonesia, home to the world’s largest nickel reserves, struggles to achieve its EV dreams – Rest of the World, February 3, 2025
Images show China building huge fusion research facility, analysts say – Reuters, January 28, 2025
Opinion and Commentary
The New Cold War Mindset – William McHenry, Real Clear Defense, February 10, 2025
Want Free Trade? May I Introduce You to the Tariff. – Robert Lighthizer, NYTs, February 6, 2025
Trump’s Tariffs Usher in New Trade Wars. The Ultimate Goal Remains Unclear. – Greg Ip, WSJ, February 3, 2025
DeepSeek has ended Silicon Valley's AI monopoly – Vivian Toh, Nikkei Asia, January 31, 2025
DeepSeek is a modern Sputnik moment for West – Justin Bassi, The Strategist, January 29, 2025
On DeepSeek and Export Controls – Dario Amodei, January 2025
The Last Word
“We believe that excessive regulation of the AI sector could kill a transformative industry just as it’s taking off and we’ll make every effort to encourage pro-growth AI policies.”
– U.S. Vice President JD Vance at the AI Action Summit, Paris, France, February 11, 2025
About: Tech Diplomacy Now
The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue is the world’s preeminent trusted technology accelerator. As the leader of the new category of Tech Diplomacy, the Institute integrates technology expertise, Silicon Valley strategies, and foreign policy tools to build the Global Trusted Tech Network of governments, companies, organizations and individuals to accelerate the innovation and adoption of trusted technology and ensure technology advances freedom.