US-China AI Race Fuels Debate Over Values and Global Power

The United States and China are intensifying their competition to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI), a rivalry that experts liken to a security dilemma. U.S. investment in automated weapon systems reached $18 billion between 2016 and 2020, while China integrates AI into its social‑credit system and tightens online controls through the Great Firewall. Analysts warn that the winner of this race will embed its governing principles in future AI, shaping global technology and political order.

Senator Ted Cruz argued that the contest is not merely about economic dominance but about the moral framework guiding AI. He urged a free‑market, free‑speech approach for American AI development, warning that Chinese‑led AI would advance surveillance, propaganda and social control. Cruz framed the outcome as a test of America’s faith in market forces and a determinant of the nation’s future economic hegemony.