Autocracy 2.0

In Autocracy 2.0, Jennifer Lind reveals how China's leaders defied expectations and propelled the country to innovation superpower status—and what that means for the balance of power and global struggle between democracy and authoritarianism.

In 2008, the world watched in awe as 2,008 men pounded fou drums in unison at the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony—a spectacle that heralded China's arrival as a global powerhouse. Yet even as China's economy skyrocketed, skeptics scoffed at its ability to lead in tech, arguing that its authoritarian institutions smother true innovation. Jennifer Lind dismantles this assumption, showing that China hasn't just kept pace—it has, in fact, surged ahead.

Coupling hard data with razor-sharp analysis, Lind shows that China's ascent was fueled by what she calls "smart authoritarianism": a model of governance in which autocratic leaders temper tight political control with inclusive economic measures. By balancing pro-innovation policies with tools of repression, China's leaders have obtained political control and economic growth. These smart authoritarians, Lind observes, aren't the brass-knuckled dictators of the past, they're their polished, Savile Row-clad progeny—and they are found not only in China, but in authoritarian regimes worldwide.

Compelling and incisive, Autocracy 2.0 is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand China's meteoric rise and how today's autocrats are reshaping the technological frontier, governance, and the global balance of power.

Jennifer Lind researches the international relations of East Asia and US foreign policy toward the region. She is Associate Professor of Government at Dartmouth College, and a fellow at Chatham House, London and at Harvard University's Reischauer Institute for Japanese Studies.

This book will open readers' eyes to the remarkable sophistication of Chinese elites. A must-read.

Mark Zachary Taylor, author of The Politics of Innovation:

A bold and well-argued attack on the thesis that authoritarian regimes are technologically stagnant.

Dan Reiter, author of How Wars End:

Autocracy 2.0 convincingly demonstrates that China will innovate and compete successfully in the twenty-first century. Sobering.

Susan Shirk, author of Overreach:

As China experiences its DeepSeek AI moment and leads the world in electric vehicles and other green technologies, Westerners can no longer be smug about their technological primacy. This illuminating book explains how authoritarian China accomplished these miracles despite heavy-handed social control and Western sanctions.