Government as Shareholder: Proactive Competitive Strategy or Last Resort?

About this episode

The episode debates whether government investment in strategic industries is a proactive competitive strategy or a last resort.

Global powers are increasingly shaping markets and taking equity positions in strategic industries. But recently, Washington’s role in the economy has expanded, with stakes in companies like Intel, different from its traditionally hands-off approach. Could strategic government investment be a source of strength and competitiveness—or should it remain a true last resort, preserving a system that allows markets to determine winners and losers? We debate: Government as Shareholder: Proactive Competitive Strategy or Last Resort? This debate was created in partnership with the Council on Foreign Relations and was recorded on May 18, 2026, at 6 PM. Arguing "Proactive Competitive Strategy": Laura Taylor-Kale, Senior Fellow for Geoeconomics and Defense at the Council of Foreign Relations and Former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy Richard Falkenrath, Senior Fellow for National Security at the Council on Foreign Relations; MJ Chung Distinguished Chair at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University Arguing "Last Resort": Bob Pozen, Distinguished Senior Lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management; Former President of Fidelity Investments…

People in this episode

Host: John Donvan

Guests: Laura Taylor-Kale, Richard Falkenrath, Bob Pozen, Yasheng Huang

Topics covered

• government investment
• market strategy
• economic policy
• competitive strategy
• debate

Keywords

• government shareholder
• strategic investment
• market competition
• economic strategy
• CFR debate

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Council on Foreign Relations, MIT Sloan School of Management, Epoch Foundation

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