China's dominance in clean energy technology presents a deep paradox: it is funded by fossil fuels. Manufacturing solar panels, batteries, and EVs is incredibly energy-intensive. To meet this demand, China is increasing its coal imports and consumption, simultaneously positioning itself as a climate 'saint' for its green exports and a 'sinner' for its production methods.

Beyond algorithms and talent, China's key advantage in the AI race is its massive investment in energy infrastructure. While the U.S. grid struggles, China is adding 10x more solar capacity and building 33 nuclear plants, ensuring it will have the immense power required to train and run future AI models at scale.

Despite developing the world's cheapest solar power, China remains addicted to coal for political, not economic, reasons. Countless local governments in poorer regions depend entirely on coal mining for revenue and employment. This creates a powerful political inertia that the central government is unwilling or unable to overcome, prioritizing local stability and energy security over a complete green transition.

Public perception of nuclear power is skewed by highly visible but rare disasters. A data-driven risk analysis reveals it is one of the safest energy sources. Fossil fuels, through constant air pollution, cause millions of deaths annually, making them orders of magnitude more dangerous.

Perception of nuclear power is sharply divided by age. Those who remember the Three Mile Island accident are fearful, while younger generations, facing the climate crisis, see it as a clean solution. As this younger cohort gains power, a return to nuclear energy becomes increasingly likely.

A study on a Chinese policy providing free coal heating north of the Huai River, but not south, created a natural experiment. This revealed that the resulting increase in particulate pollution caused residents in the north to live, on average, five years less than their southern counterparts.

The 1979 Three Mile Island nuclear incident occurred just 12 days after the premiere of "The China Syndrome," a Hollywood movie about a near-identical plant accident. This eerie timing massively amplified public fear and distrust of nuclear technology.

The Chernobyl nuclear disaster was only discovered by the West because an unusual southeasterly wind blew radiation toward Sweden. Had the wind blown in its normal direction, the Soviets might have concealed the incident indefinitely, potentially altering the timeline for the collapse of the USSR, which followed five years later.

An anonymous CEO of a leading AI company told Stuart Russell that a massive disaster is the *best* possible outcome. They believe it is the only event shocking enough to force governments to finally implement meaningful safety regulations, which they currently refuse to do despite private warnings.