Introduction 2

China’s Cyber Evolution 4

How the United States Fell Behind 6

The Promise of AI 9

How to Leverage the U.S. Position 10

1.1 Leverage Commercial Visibility Into Chinese Campaigns 13

1.2 Deploy Sensors in OT and ICS Environments 14

1.3 Establish a National Collective Defense System 15

1.4 Establish a Defensive Shield to Block Foreign Threats 15

2.1 Prioritize Offensive Cyber Operations Against the China Threat 17

2.2 Scale Takedowns of Chinese Infrastructure  18

2.3 Create Incentives to Fracture the Enabler Ecosystem 19

2.4 Build a National Deception Capability 19

2.5 Develop Cross-Domain Response Options 20

3.1 Establish a Vendor Liability Regime 21

3.2 Use AI to Drive Security at Scale 22

3.3 Establish Mandatory Cybersecurity Baselines 23

3.4 Harden Defense Critical Infrastructure 24

3.5 Mandate Internet Security Measures 25

4.1 Improve White House Coordination 26

4.2 Empower CISA 27

4.3 Reform Sector-Specific Collaboration 28

4.4 Consolidate the Government’s Operational Interface 29

Conclusion  29