America just stepped into what sounds like the plot of a science fiction movie. <\/p>\n
During a major science and technology conference in Texas, the Trump Administration\u2019s top science official claimed that the United States now possesses technology that can \u201cmanipulate time and space\u201d and \u201cleave distance annihilated.\u201d<\/p>\n
Michael Kratsios, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, made the striking statements on April 14 during his keynote address at the Endless Frontiers Retreat in Austin. <\/p>\n
The event brought together government officials, scientists<\/a>, and business leaders to discuss America\u2019s future in innovation. <\/p>\n Kratsios said the U.S. is entering \u201cthe early light of the new Golden Age of America,\u201d calling for a renewed national push into advanced technology.<\/p>\n \u201cOur technologies permit us to manipulate time and space,\u201d Kratsios said. \u201cThey leave distance annihilated, cause things to grow, and improve productivity.\u201d<\/p>\n He did not clarify whether these claims were literal or metaphorical, but the language has already sparked intense speculation online.<\/p>\n Push to revive mid-century momentum<\/p>\n Throughout his remarks<\/a>, Kratsios compared current progress to the technological leaps of the 20th century, referencing the Apollo missions, nuclear expansion, and the rise of the internet. <\/p>\n He warned that innovation has slowed in recent decades, hindered by a regulatory system born in the 1970s.<\/p>\n \u201cAdvances have not stopped, but something has gone wrong,\u201d Kratsios said. He pointed to a decline in nuclear reactor development, stalled aerospace ambitions, and slower transportation systems as examples of missed opportunities.<\/p>\n He also emphasized the importance of shifting from a reliance on cheap labor and immigration to productivity-enhancing technologies. <\/p>\n \u201cWe can build in new ways that let us do more with less,\u201d he said. \u201cOr we can borrow from the future. And we have chosen debt.\u201d<\/p>\n Kratsios described this moment as a turning point, urging the country to \u201cescape the gravity\u201d of the past few decades and re-enter an era of bold invention.<\/p>\n National security, tech diplomacy, and a call to protect innovation<\/p>\n Kratsios also tied technological innovation to U.S. national security and foreign policy. He outlined a three-part strategy to protect American innovation from global competitors \u2014 particularly China \u2014 by safeguarding intellectual property, securing supply chains, and enforcing export controls.<\/p>\n \u201cWe must restrict foreign access to sensitive data and strengthen oversight of international collaborators,\u201d he stated. <\/p>\n The speech reinforced the administration\u2019s \u201cAmerica-first\u201d stance on research security and economic competition.<\/p>\n This strategy builds on recent policy shifts that increase scrutiny of foreign investment in U.S. tech firms and require universities to disclose funding sources. <\/p>\n In a call to action, he urged innovators not to retreat from politics. \u201cYou and your fellow Americans cannot afford to give up on the nation,\u201d he said. \u201cAll of us must labor to preserve the inheritance of the American<\/a> Century.\u201d<\/p>\n