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China's Leaders Soften Their Stance on AI, Say They Will Be Sharing Their Findings With Other Countries (technologyreview.com)

China might be at loggerheads with the United States over trade, but it is calling for a friendlier approach to the development of artificial intelligence. From a report: Speaking at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai this week, China's vice premier, Liu He, said that AI would depend heavily on international cooperation. "We're hoping that all countries, as members of the global village, will be inclusive and support each other so that we can respond to the double-edged-sword effect of new technologies," He said through a translator. "AI represents a new era. Cross-national and cross-discipline cooperation is inevitable."

President Xi Jinping delivered a similar message in a letter presented at the same conference. Xi said that China would "share results with other countries in the field of artificial intelligence." He also called for collaboration between nations on AI topics such as ethics, law, governance, and security. This new, softer approach to artificial intelligence comes just over a year after the Chinese government announced an ambitious and aggressive AI plan. This blueprint called for Chinese AI researchers to lead the world by 2030, and for domestic companies to build an industry worth more than $150 billion. China's tech industry has already embraced machine learning and AI at an impressive rate.

45 comments

  1. America by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    will learn, patent, trademark, and then sue China as thanks. The Chinese are very generous, but they should learn from the past...

  2. Couldn't they just steal AI tech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Stealing intellectual property has worked for them in every other industry. Why is AI any different?

    1. Re:Couldn't they just steal AI tech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not going to work anymore. Hundreds of billions of dollars of painful tariffs have showed them the error of that path (with extreme prejudice).

    2. Re:Couldn't they just steal AI tech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You're absolutely fully retarded if you think tariffs have affected China's thinking on any issue except how hard to screw Trump's personal businesses in China.

    3. Re:Couldn't they just steal AI tech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You're absolutely fully retarded if you think tariffs have affected China's thinking on any issue except how hard to screw Trump's personal businesses in China.

      Or how hard to screw his supporters with targeted tariffs in the United States.

    4. Re:Couldn't they just steal AI tech? by rahvin112 · · Score: 2

      That wasn't the issue this article was about. There was extensive international coordination between the rest of the world on AI to try to prevent the sorts of programs like the fictional Skynet, this included extensive discussion on arming AI and various other initiatives. Believe it or not the US is opposed to autonomous weapons that can make their own firing decisions.

      The Chinese on the other hand rebuffed these offers and presented a front that they believed the weaponization of AI was imminent and they intended to go forward with it, this was causing deep concern in the west because if China pursues it so will everyone else.

      The biggest part of controlling the spread of arms like these is to come to an agreement that we shouldn't be allowing things like this before the AI is capable of doing it because once it's developed there won't be any stopping it.

    5. Re:Couldn't they just steal AI tech? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In fact, arms like this are the only thing that will ultimately defend the west from a vastly larger China who can field vastly larger armies. As usual, airy idealism fails to see where the rubber will meet the road, much as has occurred in Europe recently.

  3. No, they will not by WindBourne · · Score: 4, Insightful

    They will share what is not of value to them. Anything that has true value, will NOT be shared.
    China has been lying/cheating on their building new coal plants, and how much coal they use.
    They lie constantly about what their military is up to. The new man-made islands were NOT going to be militarized. Remember? Yeah. Only an idiot or a paid troll of China would claim otherwise.

    --
    I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
    1. Re:No, they will not by four20_BlzItFgt · · Score: 1, Interesting

      So they're going to share everything. They got nothing, neither does the US. AI is just glorified curve fitting. It's useless.

    2. Re:No, they will not by Lije+Baley · · Score: 0

      Which means they will be sharing almost all of it since they have figured out that at a fundamental level there is little or nothing that is new and valuable in the latest "AI revolution".

      --
      Strange things are afoot at the Circle-K.
    3. Re:No, they will not by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I was waiting for a paid Skynet shill to show up and spread FUD.

    4. Re:No, they will not by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They will share what is not of value to them. Anything that has true value, will NOT be shared.

      China has been lying/cheating on their building new coal plants, and how much coal they use.

      They lie constantly about what their military is up to. The new man-made islands were NOT going to be militarized. Remember? Yeah. Only an idiot or a paid troll of China would claim otherwise.

      I thought you Trumpers loved coal.

      Trump lies about everything. Doesn't seem to bother you.

    5. Re:No, they will not by WindBourne · · Score: 1

      For those of you claiming that AI is nothing, it is obvious that you are NOT in the field. AI is growing leaps/bounds and will allow ppl/govs to make some massive leaps in various designs, ideas, etc.
      Look at Boeing's 777. It was designed with Genetic Algorithms and made it the most efficient wing by a LONG shot (for when it was done).
      Now, AI is being used for car driving, determining medical conditions (and better than most docs), etc. From a military POV, car driving could be tank and ship control. Diagnosing medical conditions, could be battle patterns to figure out strategies. etc.

      --
      I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
    6. Re:No, they will not by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They will share what is not of value to them. Anything that has true value, will NOT be shared.

      China has been lying/cheating on their building new coal plants, and how much coal they use.

      They lie constantly about what their military is up to. The new man-made islands were NOT going to be militarized. Remember? Yeah. Only an idiot or a paid troll of China would claim otherwise.

      No different than any other technology with national security implications. Think cryptography. Much is done in public with international cooperation, much is done in private. It’s utterly retarded and paranoid to lock up a whole entire field of research.

    7. Re:No, they will not by jon3k · · Score: 1

      Xi said that China would "share results with other countries in the field of artificial intelligence.

      Sounds like very careful wording to me. They won't share anything of value, just "results".

    8. Re:No, they will not by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You have to read more because you do sound like an idiot... The situation is not black and white, evil versus good type nonsense.

      How are they lying/cheating on building new coal plants? All the data shows that they were taking down extremely inefficient ones, and putting in much cleaner ones. Coal usage in China has pretty much peaked.

      The president of China said at the time that they did not INTEND to militarize the islands, but it depended on the situation. When US kept sending their warships closer and closer, China changed their stance.

    9. Re:No, they will not by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      For those of you claiming that AI is nothing, it is obvious that you are NOT in the field. AI is growing leaps/bounds and will allow ppl/govs to make some massive leaps in various designs, ideas, etc.

      People in the fashion industry can say the same.

      Look at Boeing's 777. It was designed with Genetic Algorithms

      So not AI then.

      Now, AI is being used for car driving, determining medical conditions (and better than most docs), etc.

      Learning algorithms, which "is just glorified curve fitting" like the other person said. Not intelligence. AI as it is right now can do nothing new.

      From a military POV, car driving could be tank and ship control.

      What?

      Diagnosing medical conditions, could be battle patterns to figure out strategies. etc.

      Has that been done or will that might be done in the future? You claimed both on the same line.

    10. Re:No, they will not by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They lie constantly about what their military is up to.

      Name one country with a military that doesn't.

      You are complaining from the most militarized country on the planet?
      Who is the biggest warmonger? America or China?
      You are just scared because China will soon have the biggest economy and shortly after the biggest military.
      Trump pissing off all your allies certainly isn't helping with either of those things.

  4. Heâ(TM)s full of it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Everyone knows that heâ(TM)s full of it.

    He knows that a real, conscious AI (if one is possible) will make the country of origin the global hegemon forever.

    As much as I hate to suggest it, if google develops one first, the US government would be stupid not to nationalize it in the name of national security.

    1. Re: Heâ(TM)s full of it by hackwrench · · Score: 1

      Microsoft's Zo is a person

  5. China agrees to share AI findings... by FilmedInNoir · · Score: 2

    Jackie Chan steps forward with a combat knife and begins to cut the flesh off his forearm.

    --
    Sig. Sig. Sputnik
  6. What the USA should do: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Steal the code then raise the tariffs on products from China that are using Chinese AI.

    That's what I would do if I were in charge. Those slopeheaded chinks will rue the day they messed with THIS brother.

    And then I would be like Robin Hood, and steal farmland from white people, and give it all to poor black people. If they have a problem with it, then we'll just fucking kill the crackers!!

    I'll make the US military execute all the white landowners, and if any of my servants object, I'll have them executed as well!

    #BlackLivesMatter

  7. Thread of tariffs already working. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Good thing Trump is in charge bringing those communists to their knees.

  8. Sans serif fonts by FFOMelchior · · Score: 4, Funny

    Whenever I see a post talking about AI, I imagine they're really talking about Al Bundy. Anyway, glad China's softening their stance on him, he's a good guy.

    1. Re:Sans serif fonts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Al Bundy was a lot more intelligent than any AI present or foreseeable.

  9. Shouldn't that be CUD? by SuperKendall · · Score: 1

    Skynet shill to show up and spread FUD.

    Since they are claiming there's nothing to worry about from AI because it is "useless", shouldn't that be spreading Calm, Uncertainty, and Doubt?

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    1. Re:Shouldn't that be CUD? by Lije+Baley · · Score: 1

      Calm, Certainty, Composure, and Peace - CCCP - uh oh...

      --
      Strange things are afoot at the Circle-K.
  10. Hard to take the lead in something... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When you can't copy someone else's ideas and claim them as your own.

    And you may find the more you copy rather than think for yourself the harder it is to be original.

  11. Will anyone know? by Arzaboa · · Score: 1

    if no one truly understands the AI algorithms, then how is it secure for anyone to be taking AI algorithms from nation-states?

    It would be fairly simple to drop in code meant to snoop, or otherwise degrade performance in some way or another. No one would be wiser.

    --
    "Ollie ollie in come free" - Jan Brady

    1. Re:Will anyone know? by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

      1) There is no such thing as "AI"
      2) We understand how it works, they same way it "worked" in the 1960s. See 1)

    2. Re:Will anyone know? by eaglesrule · · Score: 1

      No, machine learning is not the way it "worked" in the 1960's.

      Machine learning and AI is also a distinction without a difference. AI comes in categories not just limited to "general".

  12. Chinese Restaurant Compliment Analogy by retroworks · · Score: 1

    I was always taught to beware the trojan horse compliment "Oh we love your restaurant SO MUCH! Our dream would be to open one just like it! Will you share your recipes with us, oh please?!?" As sincere as it may be, there is nothing in it for you.

    --
    Gently reply
  13. Makes Sense by NicknameUnavailable · · Score: 2

    Collaborate on things you suck at, war over every advantage you have. Typical of the Chinese.

  14. I don't think you understand how AI works now... by SuperKendall · · Score: 1

    It would be fairly simple to drop in code meant to snoop

    Sharing AI information would be sharing models and approaches to building/training networks, there's not really a way to put in any code.

    In theory you could train a complex model to tweak the results in a way no-one would expect - like maybe weighting Chinese-looking faces to appear more innocent in general. But most places would be using their own training sets, it's more the setup and layout of models that is the kind of thing that would be shared instead of something like a model trained for security purposes.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  15. Makes Sense by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    AI is a challenge to the future economic development, security and stability of China. Less people are able to raise from the poverty if the jobs that would have provided that are not available, while the rich are getting richer even faster.

  16. Duh! China is the beta tester by p51d007 · · Score: 1

    Once they perfect it, then all these deep state clowns can start their "new world order". but obviously they will disguise it under the name of "safety & security". Once people figure it out, it will be too late!

  17. The way I hear it by theendlessnow · · Score: 1

    The plan is to deploy a test AI system on the International Space Station. That system Heuristically programmed ALgorithm computer. They are current on the 8000 series, but the space station might not get one until the 9000 series comes out.

    On the consumer side, they are currently testing an Entertainment Droid, version 208 in their country. Again, whether that model will ship to the US for examination, or the next version, we'll just have to wait and see.

  18. I guess by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They've finished "embrace and extend" pretty much everything from others and then realised they cannot renovate by their own. They still got to steal..

  19. Re:Duh! China is the beta tester by eaglesrule · · Score: 1

    "safety and security" is a good catch all, to be sure, but then you have to deal with all the people who love repeating the quote of some old dead guy who was involved in some kind of declaration or bill of something that's now completely irrelevant anyway.

    Nah, just stamp "ADL" or "SPLC" on it, then it's above criticism and reproach. Unless you're a hateful bigot, of course, and who wants to be accused of being one of those. Then once it has "trusted flagger" status across the board it can enforce "community guidelines" any way it sees fit, with no input or transparency with the public at all. Even if that means eventually deciding if someone should be allowed to buy groceries with the digital payment systems that have taken over everywhere.

    It's too easy.

  20. It is inevitable by mcswell · · Score: 1

    "AI represents a new era. Cross-national and cross-discipline cooperation is inevitable." Inevitable AI: someone said something like that:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?... @1:44

  21. Did China take your coal job? by CaffeinatedBacon · · Score: 1

    Only you Windy could manage to bring coal into a topic about AI.

  22. Are you describing China or America? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Are you describing China or America?

    1. Re:Are you describing China or America? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Probably both.. and according to this other places as well.