In the battle for technology supremacy between the US and China, America has "dropped the ball" in basic research funding, according to former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
And this is one of the main reasons why China has been able to catch up.
Dr. Schmidt, who is currently chairman of the US Department of Defense's innovation board, said he thinks the US is still ahead of China in technological innovation for now.
But the gap is closing rapidly.
"There is a real focus in China on the invention and new techniques of artificial intelligence," he told the BBC's Talking Business Asia program. "China has now caught up in the rush to publish newspapers."
According to data from the World Economic Forum, China replaced the United States as the world's leading research publisher in science and engineering in 2018.
This is significant because it shows how much China is focusing on R&D compared to the United States.
For example, Chinese telecom infrastructure giant Huawei spends up to $ 20 billion (£ 15.6 billion) on research and development, one of the largest budgets in the world.
This research and development is helping Chinese tech companies move forward in key areas such as artificial intelligence and 5G.
Dr. Schmidt attributes the narrowing of the innovation gap between the US and China to a lack of funding in the US.
"Throughout my life, the United States has been the undisputed leader in research and development," the former Google chief said. "The funding was equivalent to roughly 2% of the country's GDP. R&D has recently fallen to a lower percentage than before Sputnik."
According to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a US technology lobby group, the US government now invests less in R&D than the size of the economy than it has in more than 60 years.
This has resulted in "stagnant productivity growth, a lag in competitiveness and a reduction in innovation".
Dr. Schmidt also said that US technological supremacy has been built on the shoulders of international talent who have been allowed to work and study in the US and warns that the US will risk falling further behind if this type of talent does not. is allowed to enter the country.
Technological warfare
"This highly skilled immigration is crucial to American competitiveness, global competitiveness, building these new companies and so on," he said. "America doesn't have enough people with these skills."
The United States has been embroiled in a technological cold war with China and has intensified its anti-Chinese rhetoric in recent months.
This week he revoked the visas of 1,000 Chinese students he claims have military ties and accused Chinese tech companies of acting as agents for the Chinese Communist Party - he claims Beijing and these companies refuse.
The Trump administration has also taken steps to block Chinese tech companies such as Huawei and Chinese apps including TikTok and WeChat, claiming they pose a national security threat.
Beijing has said this is "naked bullying," and Dr. Schmidt says the bans will mean that China will be even more willing to invest in its own domestic production.
Dr. Schmidt says the right strategy for a US-China relationship is what is called a "rivalry partnership" in which the US must be able to "partner with China while competing with them."
"When we are rivals, we are rude, we are pursuing things. We are competing hard, we are trying to gain an advantage - real competition - that the United States can do well and that China can do well. But there are also many areas where we must be partners ".