Talent Recruitment Program Discreetly Revived by China As U.S. Export Restrictions Tighten

China ceased recruiting overseas-trained scientists under a talent recruitment program in 2018. However, two years later, the East Asian country discreetly revived the initiative to advance its proficiency in technology as the U.S. tightened its restrictions on exports.

For a decade, the country of China recruited first-class overseas-trained scientists under a talent recruitment program that Washington, D.C. considered a threat to the U.S.’ supremacy in technology. Two years after China ceased promoting the talent recruitment program in 2018, the East Asian country discreetly revived the Thousand Talents Plan (TTP) and renamed it to Qiming.

An article in the South China Morning Post states that the new talent recruitment program offers benefits such as signing bonuses worth 3 to 5 million yuan ($420,000 to $700,000) and subsidies for home purchases.

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Tighter Export Restrictions

According to an article in Reuters, the new talent recruitment program is supervised by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology which aims to recruit both Chinese and foreign experts. Further reports say the race to bring in tech talent came after Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized the need to not depend on the U.S. in the semiconductor industry as the latter imposed tighter restrictions on exports.

Reportedly, in October, the U.S. Commerce Department adopted regulations that restricted American citizens and permanent residents from supporting the production and development of the advanced chips in China.

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