China’s secret plan to crush SpaceX and the US space program

China’s secret plan to crush SpaceX and the US space program

China's fast economic progress may be slowing, but the country's space aspirations show no signs of abating. Alongside ongoing efforts to rival NASA by placing robotic landers, and eventually astronauts, on the moon and Mars, China's government is increasingly looking to its burgeoning space sector to rival U.S. companies like Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Elon Musk's SpaceX, which is targeting March 30 for the latest launch of its Falcon 9 rocket.
Though Chinese space authorities have publicly announced the country's ambitions to forge itself into a major space power by the early 2030s, President Xi Jinping's government is also considering ways to direct spending that will push Chinese tech companies toward breakthroughs in downstream technologies like robotics, aerospace, artificial intelligence, big data analytics, and other 21st-century technologies.

The majority of China's space goals continue to be centered on increasing Chinese reputation both at home and internationally. However, a drive within Xi's administration to quadruple space science funding, as well as the development of a small but increasing collection of privately supported space start-ups, indicate that both Chinese businesses and the government see long-term economic rewards in investing in space technology.

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