New book explores China’s search for technology leadership

In an era defined by intense US-China rivalry over semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and the commanding heights of global innovation, Associate Professor Andrew Kennedy’s new book arrives at precisely the right time.  

Rebellious Follower: China's Search for Science, Technology, and Innovation, published by Oxford University Press in 2026, is a landmark study that offers a sweeping and deeply original account of how China has sought to become a leading technology power from the communist revolution to the 21st century. 

The book focuses on the basic belief systems—or “policy paradigms”—that have driven Chinese policymaking. It begins by highlighting two globally influential STI paradigms from the past century, building on and extending recent research in this domain. The book then explores how Chinese leaders have adapted and resisted these paradigms and, in this way, made their country a rebellious follower of foreign ideas. Rather than simply copying the Soviet Union or the West, China has contested global ideas about innovation and reshaped them to serve its own purposes – a dynamic that continues today. 

Kennedy traces this fascinating and turbulent journey over time, starting with the arrival of Western ideas about science and technology in China in the nineteenth century. The book proceeds to explore critical episodes in modern Chinese history, from the formation of China’s scientific establishment in the 1950s to the rise of “innovation-driven development” in the twenty-first century.                                                                                     

In short, as Kennedy puts it, it is a big picture book “about the remarkable road China has travelled in this domain over many decades.”  In that way, “it puts China's current aspirations to lead the world in science and technology in perspective”. 

The book also draws on a wide range of primary sources in Chinese that were previously underexplored or unavailable, highlighting these resources for other scholars. 

Kennedy says the Crawford School of Public Policy was very supportive throughout the writing process. “Crawford was wonderfully supportive.  It provided an outstanding interdisciplinary environment in which to write the book, and it supported the publication of the book on an open access basis.  I'm also very grateful for the support I received from the Australian Centre on China in the World, which helped fund the research in its final stages,” he says.  

For policymakers, scholars, business leaders, and anyone seeking to understand the forces driving today's technology competition, Rebellious Follower is essential reading. It highlights the tortuous path China has travelled in search of technology leadership, while also making clear that the journey is far from over.    

You can read Rebellious Follower: China’s Search for Science, Technology, and Innovation here.