I have the hardback, which is 431 pages including acknowledgments, extensive notes and index. There are 351 pages of text itself. The book is well-written and a relatively easy and informative read for which the author deserves credit. There are some good reviews of the book that outline the history of the development of the chip and some of the seminal figures involved in its development. I live in Dallas close to the central Texas Instruments plant where Jack Kilby and Morris Chang, whose contributions to the creation of the chip industry are outlined, worked. In the very late 1980s, Texas Instruments was a member of a chamber of commerce with which I volunteered. TI invited us over for a presentation. During the presentation TI observed that they had developed systems that would allow the US to send a missile 800 miles and hit a target the size of a barrel. This claim was impressive and the gentleman sitting next to me leaned over and whispered in my ear "I'll bet the Russians have a bulls-eye drawn around this place." A few years later in the 1st Gulf War, TI's claim was verified. You don't have to persuade me that computer chips are a critical technology.
I divide the book into the first roughly 2/3rds that looks at the history of the chip and the US role in its development. This role in fabrication and lithography was initially critical. But, as noted in the book, "America's technological lead in fabrication, lithography and other fields had dissipated because Washington convince itself the companies should compete but that governments should simply provide a level playing field." Pg. 298. Other governments, particularly China, did not share this view.
The last roughly 1/3rd of the book, largely beginning in Section VII, looks at the Challenge of China. The history is interesting, but if you're mainly interested in the Chinese competition and the effects of globalization, you may want to start here and see what the author has to say. TSMC, located in Taiwan, manufactures a large percentage of the more sophisticated chips used globally. ASML, located in the Netherlands, manufactures basically all of the lithography equipment necessary to manufacture high-end chips. Korea and Japan manufacture meaningful amounts of the chips necessary for cars, phones, etc., but the loss of TSMC in, for instance, an attempt by China to take over Taiwan would have a huge impact on our daily lives.
It's also not clear that the Netherlands intends to willingly relinquish its primacy in manufacturing essential lithography equipment. So, the book explores the effects of U.S. efforts to globalize the manufacture of chips. The U.S. has tried to maintain some primacy of the design of chips in Silicon Valley and the book looks at some of these efforts. Recently the U.S. government has recognized the shortcomings of globalization and is trying to bring chip manufacturing back to America.
The author makes a compelling case that computer chips are a critical technology. The history of the development of this technology and U.S. competition with China are the focus of this book. If these topics are of interest to you, I recommend the book highly.
Chip War: The Quest to Dominate the World's Most Critical Technology
4.7 | 7,893 ratings
Price: 17.71
Last update: 01-07-2025
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