Infinite Loops Dan Wang — China, US and our Collective Future (EP.284)
79 snips
Oct 2, 2025 
Dan Wang, author of "Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future," shares his insights as a research fellow at the Hoover Institution. He discusses the stark contrast between China's engineering-driven growth and America's lawyer-dominated stagnation. The conversation dives into the consequences of legal obstructionism on U.S. infrastructure, the failures of California's high-speed rail, and the need for a cultural shift towards building. Dan argues both countries require significant adjustments: America needs more engineers, while China requires enhanced legal protections.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
China As An Engineering State
- China functions as an "engineering state" that treats large physical projects as solutions to economic and social problems.
- Top Chinese leaders' engineering backgrounds bias policy toward building and remaking society.
America's Lawyerly Orientation
- The U.S. is a "lawyerly society" where legal training shapes elites and incentives.
- That lawyerly orientation tends to block projects and preserve existing wealth and arrangements.
The 1914 Train Timetable Surprise
- Dan recounts riding Metro‑North and finding a 1914 timetable showing earlier trains were faster than today.
- He uses the example to illustrate how U.S. infrastructure has slowed, not improved, over a century.
