The West shouldn't assume that China is lagging behind the U.S. and Europe on tech developments, Microsoft's president and vice-chairman warned.
U.S-China tensions in the past few years have centered on the battle between the two nations for tech supremacy, culminating in a slew of export controls on critical technologies.
Speaking at the Web Summit tech conference in Lisbon, Portugal, on Tuesday, Microsoft's Brad Smith told CNBC that "in many ways," China is close to or is even catching up on technology.
"I think one of the dangers, frankly, is that people who don't go to China too often assume that they're behind," he told CNBC's Karen Tso.
"But when you go there, you're impressed by how much they're doing."
Persons:
China's, Microsoft's Brad Smith, CNBC's Karen Tso
Organizations:
China's Huawei, Summit, CNBC, U.S
Locations:
China, Europe, Lisbon, Portugal