Episode · Invest Like the Best · 2025-10-16
Patrick O'Shaughnessy & Dan Wang: books mentioned on Invest Like the Best #444
Dan Wang - The US vs China In The 21st Century - [Invest Like the Best, EP.444]
My guest today is Dan Wang. Dan is a technology analyst and author who spent six years living in China studying its manufacturing ecosystem and tech development, best known for his new book Breakneck.
Patrick O'Shaughnessy discussed The Hundred-Year Marathon by Michael Pillsbury, Breakneck by Dan Wang, and Seeing Like a State by James C. Scott. Dan Wang recommended The Art of Not Being Governed by James C. Scott and House of Huawei by Eva Dou.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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The Hundred-Year Marathon
The Hundred-Year Marathon by Michael Pillsbury is a geopolitical non-fiction book that documents China's long-term strategic plans and systematic efforts to surpass the United States as a global superpower.
Discussed“I remember this idea from the hundred-year marathon on um the book about the you know very long-term planning of China to be resurgent and then be dominant.”
Where to get it
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Breakneck
Breakneck by Dan Wang is a book examining the political economy, manufacturing prowess, and technological ambitions of China compared to the United States.
Discussed“What would be something that you would have put in the book if the book was designed to be a bit more like out there, speculative, unhinged?”
Where to get it
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Seeing Like a State
Seeing Like a State by James C.
Discussed“I think it was Eugene, our friend Eugene that first gave me the Seeing Like a State book by James C. got of the of just the very abstract idea that uh top- down systems just don't work as well over the very long term as bottom-up ones do.”
Where to get it
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The Art of Not Being Governed
The Art of Not Being Governed by James C.
Recommended“And um if I can throw in another Scott work for listeners, it is the art of not being governed, which is about highland Southeast Asia.”
Where to get it
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House of Huawei
House of Huawei by Eva Dou explores the history and global impact of the prominent Chinese telecommunications giant.
Recommended“There is a great book about Huawei written about um the company by my friend Eva Doe, a former um reporter uh with the Wall Street Journal, now a reporter at the Washington Post called House of Huawei released earlier this year.”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (9) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“What was the title of your book before Breakneck? We had a series of titles and the one that I thought that would make the most sense was move fast and break people.”
“One of the things I want to try to do in this book is to try to tackle this idea of what is innovation.”
“I think what I am really thinking about for this particular book project as well as my broader writing over the past 10 years on China is to be less focused on policy prescriptions, fixing statutes, fixing regulations.”
“And what I really enjoy is um I I start my book in my very first paragraph to say that Chinese and Americans are more alike than any other people.”
“And I substantially wrote this book in my you know um cloistered um uh office at the um at Yale University.”
“I decided over the course of writing this book that I wanted to write the truest story that I know and I decided to just try to do the best job that I possibly can.”
“Now I wonder uh whether the Chinese state will like my book. I try to write the truest story as I can which meant capturing the successes as well as the traumas um of the Chinese state.”
“Uh curl up on my couch and read some great novels. Uh everyone's reading Middle March. Uh I haven't read read Middle March yet.”
“Two hours from now, I'm going to go to Arthur's home for a book launch party, which um he is uh very kindly hosting for me.”