America is ceding the lead in creating the future
2025-06-05
The renowned American management consultant and author Peter Drucker is often credited as saying that “the best way to predict the future is to create it”—a view that applies to science as much as to the business world. It implies that gaining insights and ideas that lead to new discoveries and technologies allows victory in the marketplace, ahead of the competition. As the Trump administration continues to drastically defund and dismantle basic science in America, the United States is presenting other countries with opportunities to take the lead in seeing farther ahead, anticipate where scientific and technological prowess is going, and create the future, while the United States stands on the sidelines. This is a matter not only of scientific prestige but also of economic vitality. The country will no longer be at the forefront of commercializing breakthroughs and leveraging them for maximum economic and societal benefit. Moreover, this will trigger a massive transition for the global scientific community and alter the framework that shapes how the world’s economies connect and grow.