How long Southern Asia was able to keep digital technology unknown to others?

I think it's because US felt they were very powerful, and in the 80's the US truck/pickup industries was vurnerable and Toyota (I think) took a shot and manufactured their own pickup, which was a hit to the US Automotive Industry, eventually leading to Japan being the global technological center in Asia. After that, Japan's dumping policy means selling things abroad cheaper, and many other countries have been trading electronics. I believe that this culminates in these countries eventually becoming more advanced in the early 2000, and some are becoming more powerful than others (it was rumored that Malaysia had built a program that could disrupt radars and antennas). Other countries however, like Malaysia and Hong Kong, didn't built their own technology; it was inherited from the Brits (that's why they're more advanced than countries that fought for their independence, Malaysia's independence was given by the Brits).