The U.S. is handing over our scientific future to China

Two powerful articles this month should have every policymaker, innovator, and investor concerned about our scientific future.

In Forbes, Professor John Drake outlines how proposed cuts to NIH and NSF would strip at least $10 billion per year from U.S. economic output. These aren't abstract warnings –  they're grounded in rigorous economic research. Public R&D delivers an astonishing return of 140–210%. By contrast, infrastructure investments yield 9%. Yet somehow, science is on the chopping block.

In Axios, the story gets geopolitical. China has now surpassed the U.S. in the number of drug clinical trials and is outpacing the U.S. in biotech patents, R&D space construction, and licensing agreements. U.S. companies are increasingly importing innovation from China instead of developing it at home. That’s a structural shift – one that should have every policymaker’s full attention.

Here’s what’s happening:

• China made life sciences a national priority a decade ago. The results are now undeniable.

• U.S. biopharma firms are licensing compounds from Chinese firms at record levels.

• Chinese cancer drugs are outperforming U.S. blockbusters in clinical trials.

• U.S. federal support for early-stage biomedical research is declining – in real dollars, but more critically, as a % of GDP.

I’ve led life sciences associations and coalitions across the U.S., and I can tell you this: public funding is the spark that ignites private sector growth. When NIH and NSF funds flow into research labs, what follows is company formation, job creation, and technology commercialization. That’s not just anecdotal – it’s reflected in our regional data, our startups, and our investor interest.

The bottom line is this: you don’t win the future by gutting the engine of innovation.

Cut NIH and NSF funding now, and the U.S. loses not only $10B annually in productivity but also its leadership position in a sector that defines 21st-century prosperity and security.

China, meanwhile, is playing a long game – investing strategically, scaling fast, and drawing global attention (and capital) to its innovation hubs.

This is no longer just about funding science. It’s about whether we want to lead or follow in the industries that will define the next economy: biotech, AI-driven drug discovery, biosecurity, and synthetic biology.

If we fail to act now – if we allow short-term politics to override long-term strategy – we won’t be playing catch-up. We’ll be out of the race.

Thursday, I'll get back to my regularly scheduled blog with another post on marketing!