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Abstract Why do semiconductor mega-corporations display differences in their strategic choices between China and the U.S.? The existing research has insufficiently examined the decision-making mechanism of high-tech mega-corporations in the context of great power competitions over science and technology. The strategic choices of mega-corporations are affected by their external relations between great powers and their own attributes of “economic man” and “political man”. When great powers cooperate well with each other, the logic of “economic man” prevails, and thus mega-corporations could make their decisions independently in the global market and rationally pursue the maximization their profits. When the great powers compete or even move towards confrontation, the logic of “political man” prevails, and the strength of the “political man” attribute would influence how to deal with the U.S. political coercion, and thus determine whether or not it would move on to the next stage of economic man’s decision. The strategic choices of TSMC, NVIDIA, and ASML can provide empirical evidences for this analytical framework. This study contributes to the understanding of the decision-making mechanisms of high-tech mega-corporations in the context of U.S. technological competition with China, and it is also instructive for China and Chinese corporations to analyze the behavioral logic of their partners and competitors in the era of technological changes.
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