THE QUAD: Creating a Defense Tech Alliance to Stand Against China.

• Author: Magnuson, Stew

When it comes to the undeclared Technology War between the United States and China, there is a lot for Americans to be worried about.

Beijing seems to have the advantage in several key areas which is causing a great deal of consternation in Washington.

The U.S. rival has become adept at industrial espionage and is stealing billions of dollars worth of intellectual property.

China has a command economy and long-term vision on where it wants to be in regards to technology development. It doesn't have to contend with hyper partisanship and delayed budgets.

The nation is cornering the markets on raw materials, particularly strategic minerals needed for advanced technologies.

And it has a seemingly unending pile of money to invest in emerging technologies that may give its military--and economy as a whole--a winning edge.

But there is one thing the United States has in abundance that China is sorely lacking: friends and allies.

U.S. military leaders often say that the United States does not go to war alone--it fights alongside friends and allies.

This special issue of National Defense is devoted to the notion that the military research-and-development community must adopt the same approach. It must form partnerships with allied nations to develop the cutting edge technologies needed to stand against China's goals of hegemony in the Indo-Pacific.

And while this is a defense magazine, our editorial stance has been that it's myopic to look at the rivalry with China solely through the lens of military technology. China has clearly stated goals to advance the development of a host of commercial and dual-use technologies that it could employ to dominate both battlefields and commercial sectors, thus making it a global leader and economic powerhouse, potentially leaving the United States and its allies behind.

Past issues have looked at the US.-China rivalry by sectors: maritime technology, artificial intelligence, hypersonics and strategic minerals, to name a few.

This special report looks at members of "the Quad," which has the potential to grow into a military research-and-development alliance that could compete with China and its vast wealth and human resources.

The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue is a group of four nations--the United States, Australia, Japan and India--who gather to discuss mutual interests--namely "a shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific."

After being dormant for a number of years, the four nations, along with some...