Tech Leadership and the Future of American Competitiveness: SCSP Wrapped Day 1 Recap

Yesterday, SCSP hosted the first day of SCSP Wrapped to preview the work of our Tech Leadership Directorate in 2026.

We were delighted to have a robust dialogue with our own experts on the state of play in critical technologies and the aggressive national action plans we are launching for 2026. Here are some of the key takeaways from the event.

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Gaps Analysis: Systematizing the Scorecard

SCSP’s Gaps Analysis is foundational to our mission, serving as a dynamic scorecard for the U.S.-China tech competition. Starting in 2026, we plan to shift from a standalone research project to a more persistent, regular, and methodical exercise.

• This blue/red analysis measures who is ahead, who is behind, and where the two nations are “neck and neck” in specific technology areas.

• We use a mix of qualitative and quantitative metrics, including patents, publications, talent pipelines, innovation ecosystem effectiveness, government capacity, and the regulatory landscape to draw our assessments.

• The goal is to provide policymakers with the necessary context to identify pressure points for domestic policy, target investments, and correct misconceptions about our adversaries’ technology strengths and weaknesses.

• We also plan to launch new formats for sharing insights, including written reports, live conversations, potential podcasts, and web-based interactives.

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🚀 Launching Commissions for American Advantage in 2026

Drawing from our diagnostic work, SCSP is launching two major commissions in the new year to accelerate U.S. leadership:

National Security Commission on Robotics for Advanced Manufacturing

The commission will kick off in early 2026 to accelerate the United States’ adoption of robotics and automation.

• The focus is specifically on manufacturing because widespread robotics adoption is considered necessary for a “renaissance in manufacturing” and re-industrializing America.

• The work will cover talent development, fostering a robust domestic ecosystem, and improving the robotics supply chain (as most hardware is currently manufactured overseas).

• The commission will feature a multi-stakeholder group of industry leaders, scientists, engineers, and current and former government officials.

National Commission on U.S. Primacy in Quantum (CUSP)

The CUSP commission will tackle the entire sector of Quantum Information Sciences (QIS), which includes quantum computing, sensing, and networks. The competition with China involves three different dynamics:

• Communications: China is considered to be ahead as they already operate a secure, end-to-end national quantum communications network.

• Sensing: This is a very active competition where both the U.S. and China maintain positional advantages.

• Computing: This is a “further down the road game” where the convergence of quantum computing with Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) by 2030-2035 is expected to create unprecedented modeling and data use.

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The Path Ahead

The consensus at the SCSP Wrapped event underscored that the defining tech rivalry between the U.S. and China endures. As executive branch policies, like the new U.S. national security strategy, continue to frame this as an era of American leadership, our work remains critical. Our analytic work and efforts like the newly announced commissions are designed with an implementation mindset, moving beyond abstract reports to produce actionable plans.

We also shared a renewed emphasis to make the inner workings and insights of our commissions and work more accessible and resonant with a wider public, to share with our followers like you! We can’t wait to engage with you in the new year.