Every industrial nation started by copying the British. The European countries and the US did it in the 19th century. In the 1960s/70, everybody joked about the Japanese copying everything. In the 80s, South Korea was known for cheap copies of electronic devices. It is/was only a matter of time for China to move from copying to innovating.

One thing the U.S. (and Europe) still deal very well is branding and messaging. Most of our electronics are designed and made in China, but they are still branded and sold by western countries. The U.S. is still adept at manufacturing brands, lifestyles, identity, and "cool".

While China developing it's own technology was practically inevitable, it will be far more interesting when they begin influencing what people want.

Most of our electronics are made in china, many are definitely not designed there. Anything made for Apple definitely isn’t, most American branded electronics aren’t either. If it is designed in china, it will be obvious by the Chinese brand (e.g. Lenovo); the only big foreign company I can think of that lends its brand to Chinese designs is Nokia.

Well actually a lot of things that say made in China are actually just assembled there. Like the essentially all of the core components of the iPhone are made in Japan/SK/Germany/US and then shipped to China to be put together.

Technological diffusion has been happening since Ogg the caveman invented the wheel. Heck, there is evidence that even writing was diffused from one location in Eurasia, though the Chinese vehemently deny the possibility.

I guess we really taught them how to copy everything by moving all manufacturing there. Once they could do everything without external help, they would innovate.

Literally. We packed up steel mills, and shipped them there. We can blame it all on Nixon and Kissinger.

And the article mentions envy as one of possible reactions. Don’t forget about all the western startups when looking for copycats and impostors