Bytes and Bullets

A new cutting-edge tech cold war has already begun, and the West is falling behind fast.

' Couldn't be more timely. Mixes story-telling and analysis to illuminate the new technological arms race.'

'From the battlefields of Ukraine and the board rooms of Silicon Valley to research labs in Shenzhen, Bytes and Bullets illuminates the profound transformation of a world fast adapting its geopolitical strategies and governance paradigms to new forms of artificial intelligence and algorithmic decision-making. Feldstein delivers a panoramic and cogent account of the characters, innovations, and states big and small that are reshaping technology, geopolitics, and international security. The consequences for American power and global relationships are still unfolding - and the choices ahead for policymakers and the public depend on the clear and compelling analysis this book delivers.'

'Steve Feldstein is one of the world's foremost experts on democracy, war, and the digital revolution. In this urgent and incisive book, he weaves together cutting-edge research with a sophisticated understanding of the forces reshaping international politics. At once timely and destined to become an obligatory reference, it is essential reading for anyone seeking to make sense of the new world taking shape around us.'

'We hear a great deal about weaponized interdependence and the technological arms race, but this desperately needs to be corralled together into an accessible book with a coherent central thesis. Steve Feldstein is a seriously talented and clear-headed thinker and he is the right man-given his connections, access and expertise-to write it.'

'Steve Feldstein is a leading authority on the intersection of technology and governance. While tech is reshaping power in ways we barely understand, Steve's work cuts through the noise to highlight what we need to know. His work on digital repression and global politics challenges conventional thinking and offers new perspectives on critical issues.'

'T he placid reveries of these last few decades are about to be shattered by a new era of global conflict-one defined by a profusion of technologies even their creators don't fully understand. Steve Feldstein is among the guides I trust most in this uncertain landscape. He's the rare analyst with the breadth of knowledge, variety of experience, and clarity of vision to help the rest of us navigate the furious change that awaits.'

'In Bytes and Bullets , Steven Feldstein uses stories from Ukraine, the Middle East, Silicon Valley, and Beijing to explain one of the most important shifts in our time: The technologies that are rapidly reshaping warfare, geopolitics and economic competition. An obligatory read for anyone who wants to understand the new forces shaping the future.'

'Unmissable. Steven is a deep and original thinker on the security consequences of AI, one of the most transformative technologies of our time.'

'Bytes and Bullets provides a comprehensive overview of the ways in which technological innovation has become the core of strategic competition today, and in particular how China's pursuit of key technologies puts American security at risk. Highly recommended as a guide to the new world of geopolitics.'

'Bytes and Bullets is the best book I've read on the intersection between emerging technologies and geopolitical competition in the 21st century. Deploying clear prose and precise arguments, Feldstein jumps effortlessly from the details of drones and rockets in the latest Armenian-Azerbaijan war to sweeping yet digestible assessments of the technological dimensions of great power competition. Feldstein synthesizes analysis of governments and private companies, superpowers and middle powers, and technology and warfare in such a masterful way that Bytes and Bullets should be a must-read for anyone concerned about or trying to shape international politics today.'

STEVE FELDSTEIN is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a highly regarded thinker and speaker. Previously serving as a senior official at USAID, he is considered an international expert on technology, democracy, and national security. His first book, The Rise of Digital Repression, won the 2023 Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order. Feldstein has appeared on CNBC, C-SPAN, NPR, and BBC, and his writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, and Lawfare, among others.