Breakneck

China's Quest to Engineer the Future

De: Dan Wang

Narrado por: Jonathan Yen

For close to a decade, technology analyst Dan Wang—"a gifted observer of contemporary China" (Ross Douthat)—has been living through the country's astonishing, messy progress. China's towering bridges, gleaming railways, and sprawling factories have improved economic outcomes in record time. But rapid change has also sent ripples of pain throughout the society. This reality—political repression and astonishing growth—is not a paradox, but rather a feature of China's engineering mindset.

In Breakneck, Wang blends political, economic, and philosophical analysis with reportage to reveal a new framework for understanding China—one that helps us see America more clearly, too. While China is an engineering state, relentlessly pursuing megaprojects, the United States has stalled. America has transformed into a lawyerly society, reflexively blocking everything, good and bad.

Blending razor-sharp analysis with immersive storytelling, Wang offers a gripping portrait of a nation in flux. Breakneck traverses metropolises like Shanghai, Chongqing, and Shenzhen, where the engineering state has created not only dazzling infrastructure but also a sense of optimism. The book also exposes the downsides of social engineering, including the surveillance of ethnic minorities, political suppression, and the traumas of the one-child policy and zero-Covid.

©2025 Daniel Wang (P)2025 Tantor Media

Great insights into China and US

Listened to this on first day out. Very insightful author on China today. The one child and Covid chapters were pretty disturbing. I liked the engineer vs lawyer thesis explaining differences between China and US today. Would recommend to anyone interested in China and or US development.

thoughts on Breakneck

balance, lack of one-sided political views. good comparison and contrast between two very different approaches to governance

refreshing apt and insightful

breakneck is an excellent book written, I think, with a lot of insights about both the US and China that probably everyone in the world in private sector or in government would benefit from at the very least. thinking about. there is a wonderful candidness and genuineness of phrasing in the book. this is not a book of cliches and recycled headlines. this is a great book!

Timeless and timely

Like Wang’s annual letters, this whole book is both a musing, a study, a timeless view of two civilization more similar than they want to admit to themselves, and a timely anchoring in recent geopolitical events.

Phenomenal listen

This was one of the best books I’ve listened to this year so far. Must listen to in order to get a better view into both china and us