Ep 78 - China's secret weapon isn't subsidies, it's pain tolerance

About this episode

US policymakers are constantly discussing whether America can leapfrog China in key technologies. • Our answer: probably not, and batteries prove it. In fact, the real question isn't whether the US can – or even should – try to outpace China in at least some advanced tech; it's whether the West can afford not to learn from China. On this podcast episode, Andrew Polk sits down with Cory Combs (Head of Supply Chain and Critical Minerals Research) to unpack: • Why China is placing simultaneous bets on LFP, sodium-ion, and solid-state batteries, and what that "multi-modal" strategy reveals about how it actually innovates • How brutal domestic competition, not central planning, is driving some of China's biggest technological breakthroughs • Why Beijing tolerates crushing margin pressure on its own battery makers, and what it's betting that pain buys • The uncomfortable case for the US actually licensing "second-best" Chinese tech, rather than racing to rebuild it from scratch