Latest news with #post-ChatGPT
The Star
a day ago
- Business
- The Star
China warns of AI ‘monopoly' as US effort quickens
International cooperation: People watch a robot performing tasks at an exhibition during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai. Premier Li says going forward, China will seek to propel AI development in the Global South. — AFP SHANGHAI: China will spearhead the creation of an international organisation to jointly develop artificial intelligence (AI), the country's premier says, seeking to ensure that world-changing technology doesn't become the province of just a few nations or companies. AI harbours risks from widespread job losses to economic upheaval that require nations to work together to address, Premier Li Qiang told the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on Saturday. That means more international exchanges, Beijing's No 2 official said during China's most important annual technology summit. Li didn't name any countries in his short address to kick off the event. But Chinese executives and officials have taken aim at Washington's efforts to curtail the Asian country's tech sector, including by slapping restrictions on the export of Nvidia Corp chips crucial to AI development. On Saturday, Li acknowledged a shortage of semiconductors was a major bottleneck, but reaffirmed President Xi Jinping's call to establish policies to propel Beijing's ambitions. The government will now help create a body – loosely translated as the World AI Cooperation Organisation – through which countries can share insights and talent. 'Currently, key resources and capabilities are concentrated in a few countries and a few enterprises. 'If we engage in technological monopoly, controls and restrictions, AI will become an exclusive game for a small number of countries and enterprises,' Li told hundreds of delegates huddled at the conference venue on the banks of Shanghai's iconic Huangpu river. China and the US are locked in a race to develop a technology with the potential to turbocharge economies and – over the long run – tip the balance of geopolitical power. Last week, US President Donald Trump signed executive orders to loosen regulations and expand energy supplies for data centres – a call to arms to ensure companies like OpenAI and Google help safeguard America's lead in the post-ChatGPT era. At the same time, the breakout success of DeepSeek has inspired Chinese tech leaders and startups to accelerate research and roll out products such as open-sourced models, robots and AI agents. That parade of technology represents Chinese developers' efforts to set world standards and benchmarks, and grab a bigger slice of the global market. They also dovetail with Beijing's broader efforts to ensure self-reliance on critical technologies in the face of tensions between the world's economic superpowers. The weekend conference in Shanghai – gathering star founders, Beijing officials and deep-pocketed financiers by the thousands – is designed to catalyse that movement. This year's attendance may hit a record because it's taking place at a critical juncture in the global race to lead the development of generative AI. It's already drawn some notable figures: Nobel Prize laureate Geoffrey Hinton and former Google chief Eric Schmidt were among industry heavyweights who met Shanghai party boss Chen Jining last Thursday, before they were due to speak at the conference. Going forward, China will seek to propel AI development in the Global South, Li said, referring to a loose gathering that includes Brazil and Africa. Schmidt later echoed Li's call for nations to work together – particularly China and the United States. 'The upsides are phenomenal,' he told delegates. 'As the largest and most significant economic entities in the world, the United States and China should collaborate on these issues,' he said. 'We have a vested interest to keep the world stable, keep the world not at war, to keep things peaceful, to make sure we have human control of these tools.' — Bloomberg
Business Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
Alibaba cloud visionary expects big shakeup after OpenAI hype
[HONG KONG] OpenAI's ChatGPT started a revolution in artificial intelligence (AI) development and investment. Yet nine-tenths of the technology and services that have sprung up since could be gone in under a decade, according to the founder of Alibaba Group Holding's cloud and AI unit. The problem is the US startup, celebrated for ushering AI into the mainstream, created 'bias' or a skewed understanding of what AI can do, Wang Jian told Bloomberg Television. It fired the popular imagination about chatbots, but the plethora of applications for AI goes far beyond that. Developers need to cut through the noise and think creatively about applications to propel the next stage of AI development, said Wang, who built Alibaba's now second-largest business from scratch in 2009. 'Probably 90 per cent of the AI people are talking about, I would say, will go away in five or 10 years because it's not really the essence of this technology,' said the computer scientist. 'But that's not bad, and it just helps us to explore.' Wang, who cemented his reputation at Microsoft Research Asia before joining Alibaba, knows a thing or two about thinking outside the box. Shortly after joining, he pitched the idea of a computing business to Alibaba's billionaire co-founder, Jack Ma. He recounted being nervous because he had no concrete business proposal, no models to present, just a conviction that the need for computing would explode in the coming years. He was right. Alicloud, as it's commonly known, is today a US$16 billion business. It not only underpins Alibaba's global e-commerce and logistics endeavours, but it's also the progenitor of the Qwen model, considered on par with DeepSeek and US rivals such as GPT and Gemini. Alibaba has gone all-in on AI, joining the race to build human-like intelligence. US and Chinese companies are investing billions of US dollars to develop a technology with the potential to turbocharge economies and, over the long run, tip the balance of geopolitical power. US President Donald Trump signed executive orders in a call to arms to ensure companies such as OpenAI and Google help safeguard America's lead in the post-ChatGPT era. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Wang refrained from addressing that broader conflict. But he did have some choice words for the way the likes of OpenAI and Meta Platforms have thrown money at the problem, including by signing on talented engineers at sports-megastar salaries. 'What happened in Silicon Valley is not the winning formula,' he said. 'It's really about innovation. So when you are in the early stage of innovation, I don't think talent is a problem because the only thing you need to do is to get the right person, not really the expensive person.' Going back almost two decades, Wang admits he never saw the present-day AI revolution coming so soon. All he envisioned was computing becoming as vital as electricity or oil. That should remain so for at least decades. As for China, Wang's firm belief is it will remain a hotbed of innovation, in part because it's one of the biggest technology laboratories in the world. 'It's a test bed for the new technology,' he said. 'People are just fascinated about technology. They are doing a lot of different things.' BLOOMBERG
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
China PM warns against a global AI 'monopoly'
China PM warns against a global AI 'monopoly' China will spearhead the creation of an international organisation to jointly develop AI, the country's premier said, seeking to ensure that the world-changing technology doesn't become the province of just a few nations or companies. Artificial intelligence harbours risks from widespread job losses to economic upheaval that require nations to work together to address, Premier Li Qiang told the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on Saturday. That means more international exchanges, Beijing's No 2 official said during China's most important annual technology summit. Li didn't name any countries in his short address to kick off the event. But Chinese executives and officials have taken aim at Washington's efforts to curtail the Asian country's tech sector, including by slapping restrictions on the export of Nvidia chips crucial to AI development. On Saturday, Li acknowledged a shortage of semiconductors was a major bottleneck, but reaffirmed President Xi Jinping's call to establish policies to propel Beijing's ambitions. The govt will now help create a body - loosely translated as the World AI Cooperation Organization - through which countries can share insights and talent. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Most Beautiful Female Athletes Right Now Undo "Currently, key resources and capabilities are concentrated in a few countries and a few enterprises. If we engage in technological monopoly, controls and restrictions, AI will become an exclusive game for a small number of countries and enterprises," Li told hundreds of delegates huddled at the conference venue on the banks of Shanghai's iconic Huangpu river. China and the US are locked in a race to develop a technology with the potential to turbocharge economies and - over the long run - tip the balance of geopolitical power. This week, US President Donald Trump signed executive orders to loosen regulations and expand energy supplies for data centers - a call to arms to ensure companies like OpenAI and Google help safeguard America's lead in the post-ChatGPT era. At the same time, the breakout success of DeepSeek has inspired Chinese tech leaders and startups to accelerate research and roll out AI products. The weekend conference in Shanghai - gathering star founders, Beijing officials and deep-pocketed financiers by the thousands - is designed to catalyze that movement. The event, which has featured Elon Musk and Jack Ma in years past, was launched in 2018. This year's attendance may hit a record because it's taking place at a critical juncture in the global race to lead GenAI development. It's already drawn some notable figures: Nobel Prize laureate Geoffrey Hinton and former Google chief Eric Schmidt were among heavyweights who met Shanghai party boss Chen Jining Thursday, before they were due to speak at the event.
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Business Standard
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
DeepSeek, Trump's plan steer agenda at China's most important AI summit
Star founders, Beijing officials and deep-pocketed financiers converge on Shanghai by the thousands this weekend to attend China's most important AI summit. At the top of the agenda: how to propel Beijing's ambitions to leapfrog the US in artificial intelligence — and profit off that drive. The World Artificial Intelligence Conference, which has featured Elon Musk and Jack Ma in years past, was devised to showcase the cutting-edge of Chinese technology. This year's attendance may hit a record as it's taking place at a critical juncture in the US-Chinese tech rivalry. This week, US President Donald Trump unveiled his so-called AI Action Plan — a sort of call to arms to ensure the country keeps its lead in the post-ChatGPT epoch. At the same time, the emergence of DeepSeek in January galvanised a generation of Chinese developers to ride a nationwide investment and innovation wave. From Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. to fledgling firms such as Minimax, the country's AI aspirants have since moved aggressively to try and close the gap with the likes of OpenAI and Google. 'While many recognise DeepSeek's achievements, this represents just the beginning of China's AI innovation wave,' said Louis Liang, an AI sector investor with Ameba Capital. 'We are witnessing the advent of AI mass adoption, this goes beyond national competition.' The Shanghai conference rundown for now remains largely unknown — as it has in years past just days before kickoff. Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend, and tech leaders from Tencent Holdings Ltd. to ByteDance Ltd. and startups like Zhipu AI and Moonshot are likely to turn out in force. Here's what we can expect from the summit starting Saturday. DeepSeek's aura Neither the startup nor its reclusive founder Liang Wenfeng feature in the advance literature for the event. And yet, the two-year-old firm is likely to be one of the topics du jour. Since its low-cost, high-performance AI model humbled much of Silicon Valley, the industry has watched China closely for another seismic moment. In a field notorious for splashing billions of dollars on Nvidia Corp. chips and data centers, DeepSeek's no-frills approach inspired a re-think of traditional models. And it challenged what till then was unquestioned US supremacy in bleeding-edge technology: Xi Jinping himself turned out in public in February to congratulate Liang and his fellow tech entrepreneurs. China craves another big breakthrough. Downloads and usage of DeepSeek models have slowed, as has the pace of new model rollouts that peaked over the spring at once every few days. Now, much of the industry talk centers on why DeepSeek's R2 — the followup to its seminal R1 — hasn't yet emerged. Local media have blamed everything from Liang's perfectionist streak to performance glitches. Trump's, and Xi's, ambitions The conference gets underway days after the US leader signed executive orders to loosen regulations and expand energy supplies for data centers. 'From this day forward, it'll be a policy of the United States to do whatever it takes to lead the world in artificial intelligence,' Trump told executives and lawmakers at a DC event. Among the attendees was Jensen Huang, whose Nvidia is one of the companies at the heart of the global AI movement. Much has been made in Washington of China's seemingly meteoric ascent in AI, with observers saying the country is now perhaps just months behind the US in terms of AI sophistication. That's a wafer-thin margin compared with sectors such as semiconductors, where America is regarded as many years or even generations ahead. Trump's newly announced action plan is likely to spur Chinese companies into accelerating their own plans to go global, in part by aggressively open-sourcing their AI platforms. Beijing wants AI to become a $100 billion industry by 2030. At the Communist Party's April Politburo study session, Xi emphasized that China must push for breakthroughs in critical areas like high-end chips and AI research. Rise of the robots Chinese humanoid makers are expected to showcase their most advanced models. Last week, UBTech posted a video of its Walker S2 humanoid walking to a battery station, removing the pack from its back, placing it on the recharge pad before fitting itself with a new battery. While obviously edited and choreographed, it encapsulated the advances that Chinese firms have made in a wide-open field — and their lofty ambitions. Unitree teased a bargain-basement price of under $10,000 for its androids. It joins the likes of AgiBot and UBTech in collectively driving a promising field in which American companies have so far failed to stake out a clear lead, despite decades of effort. The Chinese companies 'are targeting hundreds to thousands of units to be delivered this year, racing to establish the ecosystem,' Morgan Stanley analyst Sheng Wong said in a note this week. Show the money Venture capitalists and deal-makers will be hunting for emerging tech leaders. And not all of them are Chinese. China's largest venture capital houses are tapping the market for at least $2 billion in new funds. At least six of the country's most prominent VC firms — including Lightspeed China Partners and Monolith Management — are creating dollar-denominated funds designed to allow overseas investors to pool bets on Chinese companies. That's a wave of fundraising that hasn't been seen among Chinese VCs for years. It's unfolding as global investors reassess the country's startup landscape and economy, which are showing signs of revival after years of Covid-era stagnation and regulatory headwinds. Organizers promise a breakout event that will feature startup pitches and live demos for dealmakers. Startups by the hundreds are expected to fill a 70,000 sq-meter exhibition hall, showing off everything from autonomous delivery drones to machines that dispense toilet paper. Missing global touch Attendees are unlikely to spot US companies — at least not in major fashion. In 2024, Tesla Inc. popped up with its Cybertruck and Optimus robot. This year's speaker lineup doesn't (yet) include Musk but does list Yoshua Bengio, the Canadian scientist who pioneered artificial neural networks. With the US-China tech rivalry accelerating, many American companies remain wary of drawing the spotlight. Still, Beijing is likely to take the opportunity to continue pushing its international agenda. One of the conference centerpieces is a 'High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance' to discuss the challenges in deploying AI responsibly. To many observers, it's also emblematic of China's overarching goal of setting global standards. 'Since 2018, China has used WAIC to stake its claim on global AI technical and political leadership,' said Tom Nunlist, associate director of the Beijing-based consultancy Trivium. 'With the race to AI now neck and neck between the US and China, that play is more compelling than ever.'
Japan Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Japan Times
DeepSeek, Trump's plan steer agenda at China's premier AI forum
Star founders, Beijing officials and deep-pocketed financiers converge on Shanghai by the thousands this weekend to attend China's most important artificial intelligence summit. At the top of the agenda: how to propel Beijing's ambitions to leapfrog the U.S. in AI — and profit off that drive. The World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), which has featured billionaire entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Jack Ma in years past, was devised to showcase the cutting-edge of Chinese technology. This year's attendance may hit a record as it's taking place at a critical juncture in the U.S.-Chinese tech rivalry. This week, U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled his so-called AI Action Plan — a sort of call to arms to ensure the country keeps its lead in the post-ChatGPT epoch. At the same time, the emergence of DeepSeek in January galvanized a generation of Chinese developers to ride a nationwide investment and innovation wave. From Alibaba Group Holding to fledgling firms such as Minimax, the country's AI aspirants have since moved aggressively to try and close the gap with the likes of OpenAI and Google. "While many recognize DeepSeek's achievements, this represents just the beginning of China's AI innovation wave,' said Louis Liang, an AI sector investor with Ameba Capital. "We are witnessing the advent of AI mass adoption, this goes beyond national competition.' The Shanghai conference rundown for now remains largely unknown — as it has in years past just days before kickoff. Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend, and tech leaders from Tencent Holdings to ByteDance and startups like Zhipu AI and Moonshot are likely to turn out in force. Here's what we can expect from the summit starting Saturday. DeepSeek's aura Neither the startup nor its reclusive founder Liang Wenfeng feature in the advance literature for the event. And yet, the two-year-old firm is likely to be one of the topics du jour. Since its low-cost, high-performance AI model humbled much of Silicon Valley, the industry has watched China closely for another seismic moment. In a field notorious for splashing billions of dollars on Nvidia chips and data centers, DeepSeek's no-frills approach inspired a rethink of traditional models. And it challenged what till then was unquestioned U.S. supremacy in bleeding-edge technology: Chinese President Xi Jinping himself turned out in public in February to congratulate Liang and his fellow tech entrepreneurs. China craves another big breakthrough. Downloads and usage of DeepSeek models have slowed, as has the pace of new model rollouts that peaked over the spring at once every few days. Now, much of the industry talk centers on why DeepSeek's R2 — the followup to its seminal R1 — hasn't yet emerged. Local media have blamed everything from Liang's perfectionist streak to performance glitches. Trump's — and Xi's — ambitions The conference gets underway days after Trump signed executive orders to loosen regulations and expand energy supply for data centers. "From this day forward, it'll be a policy of the United States to do whatever it takes to lead the world in artificial intelligence,' Trump told executives and lawmakers at an event in Washington. Among the attendees was Jensen Huang, whose Nvidia is one of the companies at the heart of the global AI movement. Huang waves at the "Winning the AI Race" event in Washington on Wednesday. | Getty Images / via Bloomberg Much has been made in Washington of China's seemingly meteoric ascent in AI, with observers saying the country is now perhaps just months behind the U.S. in terms of AI sophistication. That's a wafer-thin margin compared with sectors such as semiconductors, where America is regarded as many years or even generations ahead. Trump's newly announced action plan is likely to spur Chinese companies into accelerating their own plans to go global, in part by aggressively open-sourcing their AI platforms. Beijing wants AI to become a $100 billion industry by 2030. At the Chinese Communist Party's April Politburo study session, Xi emphasized that China must push for breakthroughs in critical areas such as high-end chips and AI research. Rise of the robots Chinese humanoid makers are expected to showcase their most advanced models. Last week, UBTech posted a video of its Walker S2 humanoid walking to a battery station, removing the pack from its back, placing it on the recharge pad before fitting itself with a new battery. While obviously edited and choreographed, it encapsulated the advances that Chinese firms have made in a wide-open field — and their lofty ambitions. Unitree teased a bargain-basement price of under $10,000 for its androids. It joins the likes of AgiBot and UBTech in collectively driving a promising field in which American companies have so far failed to stake out a clear lead, despite decades of effort. The Chinese companies "are targeting hundreds to thousands of units to be delivered this year, racing to establish the ecosystem,' Morgan Stanley analyst Sheng Wong said in a note this week. Show the money Venture capitalists and dealmakers will be hunting for emerging tech leaders. And not all of them are Chinese. China's largest venture capital houses are tapping the market for at least $2 billion in new funds. At least six of the country's most prominent VC firms — including Lightspeed China Partners and Monolith Management — are creating dollar-denominated funds designed to allow overseas investors to pool bets on Chinese companies. That's a wave of fundraising that hasn't been seen among Chinese VCs for years. It's unfolding as global investors reassess the country's startup landscape and economy, which are showing signs of revival after years of COVID-era stagnation and regulatory headwinds. Organizers promise a breakout event that will feature startup pitches and live demos for dealmakers. Startups by the hundreds are expected to fill a 70,000-square-meter exhibition hall, showing off everything from autonomous delivery drones to machines that dispense toilet paper. Missing global touch Attendees are unlikely to spot U.S. companies — at least not in major fashion. In 2024, Tesla popped up with its Cybertruck and Optimus robot. This year's speaker lineup doesn't (yet) include Musk but does list Yoshua Bengio, the Canadian scientist who pioneered artificial neural networks. With the U.S.-China tech rivalry accelerating, many American companies remain wary of drawing the spotlight. Still, Beijing is likely to take the opportunity to continue pushing its international agenda. One of the conference centerpieces is a "High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance' to discuss the challenges in deploying AI responsibly. To many observers, it's also emblematic of China's overarching goal of setting global standards. "Since 2018, China has used WAIC to stake its claim on global AI technical and political leadership,' said Tom Nunlist, associate director of the Beijing-based consultancy Trivium. "With the race to AI now neck and neck between the U.S. and China, that play is more compelling than ever.'
