O Globo report points to China’s scientific leadership

It’s not just in space that the United States and China are vying for global leadership. A report in the newspaper “O Globo”published on Sunday (12), shows that although international attention is focused on the Artemis II mission – which marked the return of manned flights around the Moon – it is on Earth that the Chinese are taking the scientific lead.

The article “As the world follows Artemis II, shows that the Chinese have surpassed the Americans in total spending – public and private – on R&D. Data released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) shows that in 2024, China invested US$1.03 trillion, slightly more than the US’s US$1.01 trillion, considering figures adjusted for purchasing power parity.

In an interview with the newspaper, IMPA’s director-general, Marcelo Viana, stressed that China’s progress is not just a matter of numbers, but reflects a clear strategy of global insertion. “China understands and values international collaboration as an engine of science, but also as an instrument of geopolitics. We have a relationship of parity and we are very well received. China is very receptive to Brazil,” he said.

The consistent growth in investment – with an average increase of around 10% per year over the last decade – has placed the country at the forefront of strategic areas such as artificial intelligence, synthetic biology, new materials and energy.

According to the report, in addition to the volume of resources, the indicators show significant advances in scientific production. China already surpasses the US in the number of indexed publications and also leads in areas such as physical sciences, chemistry and Earth sciences. In the group of 1% of the world’s most cited articles, the Chinese account for 27.2%, surpassing the 24.9% of the Americans – a significant leap in quality over the last few decades.

For Viana, the combination of investment, scale and planning offers important clues about the future. “If you want a glimpse of the future, go to China. Look, for example, at the impressive fleet of electric cars, high-speed trains and the widespread use of robots,” he recommends.

The scenario described points to a profound transformation in the global balance of science, in which investment, international cooperation and innovation capacity are consolidated as central tools of power and development.