Pressure Systems edition
Taiwan Chip Raids and Suez Corridors Trace US-China Rivalry
September 6, 2026
What this edition shows
Taiwanese investigators crack down on covert mainland chip operations while Beijing expands its industrial foothold along the Suez Canal, mapping a global struggle for technological and maritime chokepoints. As Washington and Beijing vie for influence over Egyptian data centres and global supply lanes, state-backed infrastructure projects collide with maritime bottlenecks like Panama Canal transit limits and escalating Middle Eastern conflict.
Reporting and analysis behind this edition 10 sources
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Xi Jinping cements China’s Suez Canal foothold as US-Iran conflict deepens
Beijing expands its Egyptian industrial hub during Xi’s first Cairo visit in a decade, securing critical trade routes while President Sisi asserts non-aligned strategic autonomy.
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As the China-US AI race reaches Cairo, Egypt faces a strategic decision
Egypt walks a tightrope as China and the US vie for dominance in AI data centre development.
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Taiwan’s six-year hunt for China’s undercover chip labs
Previously unpublished government data reveals the scale of Taiwan’s crackdown on Chinese companies accused of hiding their ties while recruiting chip talent and pursuing sensitive technology.
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China Isn’t Scared of Trump’s Squeeze on Iran
Beijing has plenty of leverage to deter Washington.
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Panama Canal restricts traffic amid Hormuz crisis: Why this matters
Limits on the number of vessels in the canal could create shipping delays and increase freight costs.
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What the Floods Say About Xi Jinping
When the Yangtze River flooded in 1998 and inundated villages in central China, Jiang Zemin, the Communist Party’s general secretary, was on the scene, bullhorn in hand, to encourage local relief efforts. Ten years later, his successor, Hu Jintao, stood among the rubble after an earthquake rocked Si…
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China Is Flatlining
Compared with Donald Trump’s chaotic, divided, and violent America, China is a bastion of steady progress and serene order. This, at least, is the story that Beijing’s propagandists have been eager to spread. The Global Times, a Communist Party–run news outlet, proclaimed earlier this year that “the…
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Will the US or China emerge as the AI superpower?
The US and China race to produce the world's leading artificial intelligence.
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China’s robots race ahead
Humanoid robot competes in the optional boxing routine event during the 2nd World Humanoid Robot Games at National Speed Skating Oval on August 26, 2026 in Beijing, China. | Image: Getty Images This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more…
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Zhou Bo: China’s alternative to Western power
Senior Colonel Zhou Bo and Sreenivasan Jain discuss China's vision of a fairer, multipolar world and work towards that.