Episode 112: Techno-Nationalism – Strategic Competition in the 21st Century with Alex Capri

In this episode of the ECIPE Global Economy Podcast, Fredrik Erixon speaks with Alex Capri about his new book Techno-Nationalism: How It Is Reshaping Trade, Geopolitics, and Society. The conversation explores the growing entanglement of technology, national security, and economic policy, focusing on key elements such as supply chain weaponisation, strategic decoupling, and tech diplomacy.

Capri highlights the geopolitical competition over critical technologies like semiconductors and AI, the implications for global supply chains, and the strategic dilemmas faced by smaller countries. The discussion offers both historical context and forward-looking insight into a fragmenting yet innovation-driven global economy.

You can purchase the book “Techno-Nationalism: How It Is Reshaping Trade, Geopolitics, and Society” here.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript of the chat here.

Alex Capri teaches in the Business School at the National University of Singapore (NUS), and in the NUS Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.

He has worked extensively in China and Asia for two decades, where he was a partner and the regional leader of KPMG’s Asia Trade & Customs Practice, based in both Hong Kong and Singapore. Prior to his consulting career, he was a trade specialist in the U.S. Treasury Department, and the U.S. Customs Service.

Alex is a regular panellist for the World Economic Forum (WEF). He writes for Forbes Asia and Nikkei Asia, and he is a frequent guest on global television and radio networks.

Known for his expertise in supply chains, global trade, technology and geopolitics, he is a research fellow at the Hinrich Foundation, a senior fellow at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) and a board member of Purdue University’s Krach Institute of Tech-Diplomacy.

He advises corporate boards on geo-economics and techno-nationalism and he provides guidance to clients on cross-border projects throughout Asia and the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas.

Alex holds an M.Sc. from the London School of Economics, in International Political Economy and a B.Sc. in International Relations, from the University of Southern California.