Smooth Operators

From Qualcomm's China optimism to Shunwei Capital's Xiaomi connections.

Good evening.?Qualcomm is in the crosshairs of not one, but two of the most contentious issues in the ongoing ‘tech war’ between the U.S. and China: semiconductors and telecoms.?But the San Diego-based behemoth doesn’t seem to mind. As?our cover story this week shows, Qualcomm seems uniquely positioned to navigate such a hostile environment. Elsewhere, we have?infographics on Shunwei Capital, the Xiaomi-connected VC firm; an?interview with Nigel Inkster?on tech, Taiwan and intelligence; a?reported piece on the renminbi’s new role busting sanctions; and an?op-ed from Ryan Hass, Bonnie Glaser and Richard Bush on America’s Taiwan strategy. If you’re not already a paid subscriber to?The Wire,?please sign up here.


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Illustration by Tim Marrs

Shaky Signal

Qualcomm got its big break by navigating the tense relationship between the U.S. and China, and it has felt the squeeze of geopolitics numerous times since — often coming out stronger than it was before. The telecom firm is now the rare U.S. company that is doubling down on China, begging the question of if it can maintain its good fortune.?Brent Crane reports.


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Source: Company website, media reports

The Big Picture: Who is Shunwei Capital?

Shunwei Capital, which has $3 billion of funds under management, has helped fund the rise of companies like iQiYi, NIO, ByteDance, XPeng and CloudWalk.?This week’s?infographics by Ella Apostoaie?look at the Beijing-based venture capital firm whose Xiaomi connections have helped skyrocket it to success.?


A Q&A with Nigel Inkster

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Nigel Inkster worked in the British intelligence services for over three decades before joining the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, where he is now a senior adviser. In this week’s?Q&A with Shannon Van Sant, he talks about the technological competition between the U.S. and China; the future of Taiwan; and countering Chinese espionage.

Nigel Inkster

Illustration by Lauren Crow


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A clerk counts renminbi banknotes at a branch of Bank of China in Nantong, Jiangsu province, July 23, 2018. Credit: Imaginechina via AP Images

The Renminbi’s New Role: Sanctions Busting

The Chinese currency remains far from supplanting the U.S. dollar in global trade, but its increasing usage abroad is helping China’s allies and friends get around U.S.-led economic measures.?Grady McGregor reports.


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Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and US Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy speak to the press at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, April 5, 2023. Credit: 總統府 via Flickr

Clearing America’s Mind on Taiwan

The casual warnings of war by America’s top elected and appointed officials has not lent confidence that the U.S. has a tight theory of the case for protecting America’s vital interests and those of its partners in Taiwan,?argue Ryan Hass, Bonnie Glaser, and Richard Bush. The U.S. needs a deeper understanding of the sharpest stresses on Taiwan and the best tools for countering them.


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