Leland Lazarus
This chapter analyzes how China&s;s Digital Silk Road has expanded into the Americas, reshaping the region&s;s technological landscape while intensifying strategic competition with the United States. It traces the evolution of China&s;s concept of “digital sovereignty,” from early internet controls and post-Snowden anxieties to the formalization of cyber, data, and security laws that underpin Beijing&s;s global tech outreach. The chapter then maps the Digital Silk Road&s;s concrete footprint in LAC: Huawei and ZTE dominance in telecommunications networks, Chinese-built data centers and undersea cables, smart city surveillance systems, cloud computing platforms, fintech expansion, and emerging AI partnerships. Through the lenses of complex interdependence, realism, and dependency theory, the chapter evaluates competing narratives. Many Latin American governments and writers view Chinese technology as affordable, fast, and development-oriented, prioritizing economic gains over US security warnings. Meanwhile, US/Western writers frame Chinese digital infrastructure as a dual-use strategic risk, citing espionage laws and cyber intrusions. Ultimately, the chapter argues that LAC&s;s challenge is not choosing between Washington and Beijing, but crafting digital sovereignty – leveraging competition to build resilience, diversify partners, and avoid a new era of technological dependency.