
Digital sovereignty is not choosing Washington over Beijing
Digital sovereignty in Europe remains more rhetoric than reality. Closing the gap requires industrial capacity, not just regulation....
In 2025, China’s wind and solar capacity surpassed coal for the first time, marking a turning point with major implications for business. What began as a clean-energy expansion story is now about how low-cost renewable power shapes competitiveness, costs, and corporate strategy.
After two decades of adding renewable capacity at unprecedented scale, China’s challenge is no longer building power generation but managing a stable, affordable grid and turning that advantage into industrial strength.
For global executives, this is no longer a distant sustainability story. It is a live test of where to invest, how to manage carbon risk, and which capabilities will matter most in the years ahead.
China’s transition offers a glimpse of a new industrial model, demonstrating how electrification and clean technology can create lasting competitive advantage.
Article 1: The Grid
How China built the world’s largest clean-power system and is now tackling the challenge of keeping it stable, affordable, and flexible as renewable energy scales.
Article 2: The Money
As renewable power lowers costs and carbon pricing rises, businesses are reshaping factories, data centers, and supply chains around access to clean, low-cost energy.
Article 3: The Companies
Baowu and Envision show how energy is becoming a strategic advantage that influences investment, operations, financing, and business value.

Mark Greeven
Professor of Management Innovation,
IMD

Sophie Liu
Research Associate,
IMD

July 3, 2026 • by Sebastian Contin Trillo-Figueroa in China
Digital sovereignty in Europe remains more rhetoric than reality. Closing the gap requires industrial capacity, not just regulation....

February 16, 2026 • by Mark Greeven in China
As debate grows over whether China is winning the technology race, executives should focus instead on how its innovation system is designed – and what that means for competition....

February 16, 2026 • by Howard Yu, Jialu Shan, Lawrence Tempel in China
BYD overtook Tesla’s EV annual market share in 2025 as it mastered unglamorous fundamentals and built capabilities sequentially while competitors chased disruption and moonshots....


The energy transition is accelerating. Are you leading the charge, or running out of gas? In Issue 19 of I by IMD, discover how to fuel a brighter future for your organization, and the planet.
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