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Business Standard
30-07-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
China launches global AI body to rival US in $4.8 trillion tech race
While humanoid robots faced off in a boxing ring at China's flagship artificial intelligence conference in Shanghai, a fight in the US-China tech war was fought in suits nearby over who gets to set the rules in the AI age. China's answer is a new global organization to convene countries to foster safe and inclusive use of the powerful new technology. At the annual World AI Conference over the weekend, Chinese Premier Li Qiang warned of AI 'monopoly' and instead called on foreign officials in the room — mostly from developing countries — to cooperate on governance. The new group, known as the World AI Cooperation Organization, embodies China's plan to jostle with the US for sway by positioning itself as a champion of AI for all. More favorable rules may give a global boost to Chinese companies competing with US firms to sell hardware and services in a market estimated to hit $4.8 trillion by 2033. For many of the countries represented at the conference, Chinese firms already offer competitive solutions, even if the US dominates the supply of cutting-edge AI chips. 'The Chinese are coming to the table with a very different AI product mix that is going to be extremely appealing to lower-income countries that lack the computing and power infrastructure needed for large-scale implementation of OpenAI-like AI systems,' said Eric Olander of the China-Global South Project. Over 800 AI companies from more than 70 countries and regions attended the conference, according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Using technology as both carrot and calling card, Beijing's approach appears to take a page out of its earlier Digital Silk Road initiative, which put Chinese companies at the center of telecommunications networks spanning continents. China for years has strived to define the global parameters for emerging technologies such as 5G, seeking to influence development and set the stage for its companies to win market share abroad. Huawei Technologies Co.'s prominent role in standard-setting groups became the subject of scrutiny of the US government when it cracked down on the use of its equipment. Global AI governance has emerged as a new battleground for the world's leading powers, both seeing the technology as critical not just for their economy but national security. President Donald Trump declared last week that his country will 'do whatever it takes' to lead in AI, with his plan for actions including countering Chinese influence in international governance bodies. While there are no binding global rules for AI development, China's action plan calls for building more digital infrastructure that uses clean power and unifying computing power standards. The country also said it supports the role of businesses in creating technical standards in security, industry and ethics. Details about the Chinese body, to be headquartered in Shanghai, are scarce. In brief public remarks before media were ushered out of the room, a Chinese Foreign Ministry senior official, Ma Zhaoxu, said the organization would work to establish standards and governance frameworks. China would discuss details with those countries that are willing to join, he added. As US and Chinese companies race to develop systems that could match or even surpassed human intelligence, safety concerns have also prompted calls for guardrails. AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton, who spoke at the Chinese event, expressed support for international bodies to collaborate on safety issues. Part of Beijing's AI strategy appears to come from its diplomatic playbook, which urges support for Global South countries to step up in international affairs. In his address to kick off the Saturday event, Li emphasized helping those nations develop AI. These countries made up most of more than 30 nations that were invited to the high-level governance talks, including Ethiopia, Cuba, Bangladesh, Russia and Pakistan. A handful of European countries including the Netherlands, France and Germany, the EU and several international organizations were also represented. No nameplate for the US was seen by Bloomberg News. The US Embassy in Beijing declined to comment on any official presence. Achmad Adhitya, special adviser to Indonesia's vice president who attended the meeting, told Bloomberg News that China's initiative is 'very appreciated by the Indonesian government.' His country is preparing AI curricula to be rolled out across 400,000 schools and is training 60,000 teachers about the tech, he said. Beijing's emphasis on openness — a word used 15 times in its governance action plan — appears to ride on the success of Deepseek earlier this year. The AI upstart stunned the world not just by releasing AI models that are almost as capable as those of OpenAI but also made them freely available for anyone to download and customize for free. A succession of Chinese companies has done the same, with companies from incumbent giants like Alibaba and newcomers like Moonshot releasing cutting-edge large language models that are similarly open-weight. That accessibility may be especially important to developing countries who may not have the resources to gather vast datasets and train their own AI models from scratch, a process that would involve expensive chips made by companies such as Nvidia Corp. China also emphasizes internet sovereignty, something that may appeal to more autocratic regimes around the world. 'We should respect other countries' national sovereignty and strictly abide by their laws when providing them with AI products and services,' according to the country's Global AI Governance Initiative issued in 2023. In contrast, Trump's AI plan vows that the US government will only work with engineers who 'ensure that their systems are objective and free from top-down ideological bias.' The US-China rivalry presents a familiar dilemma for countries that may feel pressured to choose a side, but Solly Malatsi, minister of communications and digital technologies of South Africa, rejects the binary choice. 'It's not a case of one model over the other,' Malatsi said from the conference. 'It's about an integration of the best of both worlds.'
Newsweek
19-06-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
China Goes on Diplomatic Offensive as Israel-Iran War Distracts America
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. As Israel and Iran exchanged missile fire on Tuesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping called on Central Asian countries to deepen cooperation under China's "Belt and Road" infrastructure initiative—marking the latest step in what analysts call Beijing's diplomatic offensive—and highlighted in a recent podcast by the China-Global South Project (CGSP). Newsweek reached out to the Chinese embassy via email with a request for comment. Why It Matters China's global influence continues to expand, particularly in the developing world—often at the expense of the United States. This trend has accelerated under U.S. President Donald Trump's second administration, which has withdrawn from a range of traditional U.S. leadership initiatives and soft power programs, including the World Health Organization, USAID and PEPFAR. What To Know The summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, saw Xi announce a dozen cooperation agreements spanning green mining, trade, connectivity, personnel exchanges and customs, according to Chinese state media. The previous week, China secured $11.4 billion in deals during the fourth China-Africa trade expo, hosted by the foreign minister in Changsha, Hunan Province. The two powers are "going in very divergent directions," said Eric Olander, editor-in-chief of CGSP. The podcast discussion turned to China's vocal support for Iran, as Xi spoke out Tuesday to rebuke Israel for sparking the conflict with its surprise attack last week. Uzbekistani President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping pose for a photo during their meeting on the sidelines of the China-Central Asia Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, on June 17. Uzbekistani President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping pose for a photo during their meeting on the sidelines of the China-Central Asia Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, on June 17. Uzbekistan's Presidential Press Service via AP "This conflict—China came out very quickly and did not pretend to try and be a neutral arbiter, did not pretend to be kind of nonpartisan at all," Olander said. "They came out very quickly, backed Iran in this, framed the Israelis as the aggressor, and then also positioned the United States as manipulating all of this, which is par for the course in a lot of these types of incidents." CGSP Managing Editor Cobus van Staden added, "So not only in the diplomatic realm where China is coming out so strongly in favor of Iran, but also there are very steep economic consequences for the Chinese." Iran received diplomatic support from China—a longtime strategic partner and major export market—during previous, smaller exchanges of missile fire with Israel in April and October last year. The latest crisis began Friday with Israel's surprise strikes on a range of Iranian targets, including nuclear facilities, missile batteries, senior military leaders and nuclear scientists. Iran responded with retaliatory missile and drone attacks. What's Next The U.S. response remains uncertain. Trump has signaled that the U.S. will be involved in Israel's bombing raids against Iran in some capacity, demanding Tehran's "unconditional surrender" in a Truth Social post earlier this week. It remains to be seen whether Washington will order direct military action or limit its role to support.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
China commits about $10 billion in credit lines to Latin America
By Liz Lee and Joe Cash BEIJING (Reuters) -China will commit credit lines of just under $10 billion to Latin American countries to support development, but in yuan, its top leader said when addressing a summit of Latin American and Caribbean officials in Beijing on Tuesday. President Xi Jinping delivered a speech to kick off a ministerial meeting of the China-CELAC Forum, a platform for cooperation between China and Latin American and Caribbean nations. The credit line, denominated in yuan, appears a push to further internationalise the Chinese currency, as China doubles down on deepening strategic and economic ties with the Latin American region. During the inaugural China-CELAC Forum in 2015, Beijing offered $20 billion in credit to be used to help Chinese enterprises invest in infrastructure projects across the continent. "China is doing a lot more yuan-based deals like this, particularly credit swap agreements that make it easier for the borrowing country to transact in RMB rather than USD," said Eric Orlander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project. China will also implement a visa-free policy for five Latin American and Caribbean countries, Xi said without detailing which countries they were. The visa-free policy will be expanded to cover more countries in due course. Trade between China and Latin America exceeded $500 billion for the first time last year, Xi said. That was up from the $450 billion in 2023, and China's trade with Latin America has surged multifold from $12 billion in 2000. Xi told Latin American and Caribbean officials it was a great pleasure to have "old and new" friends gather, and reinforced that China supports Latin America and the Caribbean nations to expand their influence in the multilateral arena. The China-CELAC forum has been a vehicle to deepen dialogue between China and the bloc over trade, investment and infrastructure cooperation under China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Straits Times
06-05-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Chinese fighter jets soar over Egypt in first joint exercises
BEIJING - The sound of Chinese fighter jets roared over the Egyptian pyramids and could echo across the Middle East, as Beijing wrapped up military drills with Cairo aimed at chipping away at US strategic influence in the volatile region. China's military on May 5 released videos of its fast jets, helicopters and transport planes flying high above the Sahara and hailing inaugural joint air force exercises with Egypt as 'a signal of deepening military ties and shifting alliances'. The joint exercises with one of the United States' biggest security partners come as Washington increasingly turns inward under President Donald Trump, allowing China to deepen ties across North Africa and invest billions in security projects. 'As Egypt looks beyond its traditional US partnership, a new era of cooperation is taking flight over Cairo's skies,' said a video released by the international division of state broadcaster CCTV, as a jet plane takes off into the night. Global Times, a tabloid owned by the newspaper of the ruling Communist Party, People's Daily, said the 'Eagles of Civilisation 2025' drills had established a foundation for various potential cooperation between the two countries' militaries at a time when Egypt is trying to upgrade its combat equipment, citing experts. Analysts say the 18-day drills also help Egypt assert itself as a major regional power among the Arab nations and North Africa amid growing regional turbulence. 'It's great public diplomacy for (China), particularly in the Middle East,' said Mr Eric Orlander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project. 'It's what brings people in the door for them to sell drones, SAMs, light arms, transports, et cetera. A major regional power needs an Air Force, right?' he said, referring to surface-to-air missiles. Mr Orlander cautioned that switching jet fighter systems is very expensive, and Washington could choose to withhold financial military support from Cairo if it upped its purchases of Chinese technologies. But the US – the primary security partner to Egypt, neighbouring Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states since the late seventies – has made large foreign cuts under Mr Trump that have been keenly felt across the region. And with the Gaza crisis unfolding to its north-east, ethnic violence in Sudan to the south, and political instability in Libya to its west, Egypt finds itself squeezed on three fronts. China has since pledged billions in fresh investment for projects such as satellite manufacturing facilities in Egypt capable of producing military-grade surveillance equipment. Beijing's air force said the drills represented 'a new starting point and a significant milestone in military cooperation between the two countries', in a statement marking their conclusion. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chinese fighter jets soar over Egypt in first joint exercises
By Joe Cash BEIJING (Reuters) - The sound of Chinese fighter jets roared over the Egyptian pyramids and could echo across the Middle East, as Beijing wrapped up military drills with Cairo aimed at chipping away at U.S. strategic influence in the volatile region. China's military on Monday released videos of its fast jets, helicopters and transport planes flying high above the Sahara and hailing inaugural joint air force exercises with Egypt as "a signal of deepening military ties and shifting alliances". The joint exercises with one of the United States' biggest security partners come as Washington increasingly turns inward under President Donald Trump, allowing China to deepen ties across North Africa and invest billions in security projects. "As Egypt looks beyond its traditional U.S. partnership, a new era of cooperation is taking flight over Cairo's skies," said a video released by the international division of state broadcaster CCTV, as a jet plane takes off into the night. Global Times, a tabloid owned by the newspaper of the ruling Communist Party, People's Daily, said the "Eagles of Civilisation 2025" drills had established a foundation for various potential cooperation between the two countries' militaries at a time when Egypt is trying to upgrade its combat equipment, citing experts. Analysts say the 18-day drills also help Egypt assert itself as a major regional power among the Arab nations and North Africa amid growing regional turbulence. "It's great public diplomacy for (China), particularly in the Middle East," said Eric Orlander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project. "It's what brings people in the door for them to sell drones, SAMs, light arms, transports, et cetera." "A major regional power needs an Air Force, right?" he added. Orlander cautioned that switching jet fighter systems is very expensive, and Washington could choose to withhold financial military support from Cairo if it upped its purchases of Chinese technologies. But the United States - the primary security partner to Egypt, neighbouring Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states since the late seventies - has made large foreign cuts under Trump that have been keenly felt across the region. And with the Gaza crisis unfolding to its north-east, ethnic violence in Sudan to the south, and political instability in Libya to its west, Egypt finds itself squeezed on three fronts. China has since pledged billions in fresh investment for projects such as satellite manufacturing facilities in Egypt capable of producing military-grade surveillance equipment. Beijing's air force said the drills represented "a new starting point and a significant milestone in military cooperation between the two countries," in a statement marking their conclusion. (Reporting by Joe Cash; Editing by Saad Sayeed)
