Priority Technologies - by Elisabeth B Reynolds (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

How to build innovation and industrial ecosystems in the US that support global leadership in priority technologies of the future.

A new world order is emerging, and within it, US priorities are shifting. A reconfiguration of global supply chains. The redrawing of geopolitical lines and alliances with increasing threats of conflict. A rise in weather-related disasters. And the emergence of transformative technologies. All these factors are converging to create an environment filled with uncertainty and change--but also possibility.

For the country to flourish as well as defend and secure its interests, it must build on its decades of experience in developing frontier technologies and globally competitive industries through investments into priority technologies for the twenty-first century. This volume, edited by Elisabeth Reynolds, presents a high-level introduction to some of the key areas where the United States must excel and lead in the coming decades to ensure both national and economic security. The book provides an overview of six key priority technologies--critical minerals, semiconductors, biomanufacturing, quantum computing, drones, and advanced manufacturing--needed to build the innovation and industrial ecosystems that will keep the US secure and drive shared prosperity.

Contributors:
Elsa A. Olivetti, Jesús del Alamo, J. Christopher Love, William D. Oliver, Jonathan Ruane, and Fiona E. Murray.

Review Quotes

ENDORSEMENTS

''"The security of our nation will increasingly depend not just on traditional armaments and allies but on an eclectic set of economic inputs and the critical industries they enable. In an ocean of options, where our society places its bets is of paramount importance. For policymakers, investors, and the general public seeking to separate signal from noise, this carefully curated collection comes not a moment too soon."
--Jon Finer, Former US Principal Deputy Security Advisor, National Security Council

"The path forward to ensuring American national security, shared prosperity, and well-being is fraught with hard questions and few answers. This book highlights the positive role technology can play in these outcomes, including how effective national strategy can require simultaneous government action across multiple agencies, time frames, and market segments to ensure capabilities that private actors cannot sustain independently, given the dynamics of global markets."
--Erica Fuchs, Kavčic-Moura Professor, Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University; Director, Critical Technology Initiative

"Priority Technologies should be required reading for US policymakers. The MIT contributors consider technologies, processes, and materials critical to national and economic security--and offer roadmaps for the United States to overcome its atrophied industrial base and recapture its global leadership in these strategic fields."
--L. Rafael Reif, President Emeritus and Ray and Maria Stata Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, MIT

"This book reveals a fundamental truth: Innovation alone is not enough. We must rebuild the entire ecosystem to translate scientific breakthroughs into strategic advantage. Priority Technologies is required reading for anyone interested in building the abundant, resilient future America deserves."
--Hemant Taneja, CEO, General Catalyst; author of The Transformation Principles

About the Author

Elisabeth B. Reynolds is Professor of the Practice, Department of Urban Studies and Planning, at MIT. She previously served as Special Assistant to the President for Manufacturing and Economic Development at the National Economic Council in 2021-2022 as well as the Executive Director of the MIT Task Force on the Work of the Future and the Industrial Performance Center from 2010-2021.