Abstract

The book by Alessandro Aresu, entitled Il dominio del XXI secolo. Cina e Stati Uniti e la guerra invisibile sulla tecnologia (The domination of the 21st century. China and the USA, and the invisible war for technology), is a little gem. In a world marked by a bombardment of seamlessly overlapping information, the old aphorism that knowledge is power seems to be dissolving and losing its meaning. In this magma of complexity, the book identifies some of the crucial faults along which the conflict between the USA and China is unfolding, shaping the transformation of international relations and the global economic equilibrium, with a significant impact on the European context. The first merit of the book is that it delves into the different dimensions of this conflict – industrial policies, innovation and technology, and global supply chains – through a far-reaching and straight narrative that makes the reading accessible even to non-specialists. Given the relevance of the topics covered, this book was definitely needed. In the following pages, I will try to highlight the various interesting points made in the work, as well as some critical ones.