Meet the syllabus: Globalisation of the Tech Industry

The global digital technology industry is at the center of ongoing debates over sovereign tech stacks, supply chain securitisation, and US-China tech decoupling, yet it often remains challenging to grasp the many dimensions of this evolving landscape. The postgraduate syllabus Globalisation of the Tech Industry, published open access by the ERC-funded DIGISILK project, addresses this by drawing on six years of research to provide a structured framework for teaching.

The course moves beyond simplistic narratives such as “the West creates, the East manufactures,” examining the global interconnections of innovation, manufacturing, distribution, and labour. It focuses on regionalisation and localisation strategies of tech companies, as well as local adaptations in non-Western and Global South contexts. By situating students within these debates, the module encourages critical engagement with how global dependencies persist despite political polarisation, and how technology both shapes and is shaped by uneven development.

The syllabus is suited for students interested in tech policy and governance, international political economy, digital labour, and the evolving architecture of global tech power. It is publicly available for reference and reuse:

King’s College London Pure: https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/syllabus-globalisation-of-the-tech-industry/

Figshare: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.31681288

Suggested citation:

Elisa Oreglia, Oyuna Baldakova, Thant Sin Oo & Thais Lobo (2026, Mar 13). Syllabus: Globalisation of the Tech Industry.