US-China

Erik Voorhees

2026-08-20 22:43:58

Erik Voorhees says he cares about liberty and privacy, not the U.S. itself

Crypto industry figure Erik Voorhees commented on the U.S.-China artificial intelligence race in a post on X, saying he does not care about the United States as a country in itself, but about the principles he associates with it. He said those principles are tied to individual liberty and privacy. Voorhees also stressed that he is not a nationalist and that his position is rooted in support for specific values rather than national identity. The remarks were made as part of a broader discussion around competition between the U.S. and China in AI. Techub attributed the update to a post referenced by @laurashin.

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Policy Regula

2026-08-05 03:53:02

Wall Street splits on proposed U.S. curbs on Chinese optical modules for AI data centers

A proposed U.S. move to restrict imports of Chinese optical components used in AI data centers has quickly become a new trading theme for the optical module sector. U.S. optical communications names including Marvell, Coherent, Lumentum, Applied Optoelectronics and Corning rose overnight as capital rotated into the domestic supply chain, while related A-share names tied to North America’s AI buildout came under pressure. Wall Street’s early read is not uniform. Morgan Stanley argued that if Chinese optical transceivers are ultimately restricted from the AI data center supply chain, non-Chinese vendors could gain share, with Coherent seen as the clearest beneficiary and AAOI and Fabrinet also positioned to capture incremental demand. At the same time, the bank said implementation would be difficult because non-Chinese capacity is not enough to meet AI capex demand and key upstream materials such as InP substrates still involve Chinese suppliers. Citi took a more cautious line, saying any ban would be hard to turn into a simple rule. It noted that seven of the world’s top 10 optical transceiver companies are Chinese and that they supply more than 50% of high-speed optical modules to major U.S. cloud providers. Citi expects exemptions are likely under real supply-demand constraints and said investors are now watching whether final rules hit third-country capacity, whether North American cloud firms reallocate orders, and whether overseas factories run by Chinese suppliers can continue to serve as a buffer.

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TechFlowPost

2026-07-31 02:32:55

TechFlowPost frames the new Cold War as a technology-and-finance contest

TechFlowPost published an opinion article on July 31 arguing that finance functions as a tool of social mobilization and that the latest phase of great-power rivalry is moving beyond classic trade conflict into a technology-and-finance struggle. Written by Zuoye, the piece revisits three historical arcs — the U.S.-Soviet Cold War, U.S.-Japan friction, and the current U.S.-China rivalry — and argues that Washington’s pattern has often started with trade pressure before shifting toward financial instruments. In the author’s reading, the Soviet bloc’s dependence on the dollar system, Japan’s post-Plaza demand for U.S. Treasuries, and China’s current position inside a deeply intertwined global system all show different stages of the same strategic logic. The article also argues that stock markets are taking on a more political role, with U.S. equities, especially AI and semiconductor names, described as a new form of “sovereign-grade asset.” It further claims that the latest technology contest is increasingly expressed through financial pricing, equity benchmarks, and capital-market positioning rather than through trade shares alone. The piece is presented as a historical and strategic commentary rather than a report on a single market event.

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