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What China Can Teach the U.S. About Artificial Intelligence
Article

What China Can Teach the U.S. About Artificial Intelligence

Visionary research is no longer the most important element of progress.


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Recommendation

Since about 2010, the field of artificial intelligence (AI) has shifted from pure R&D into a phase of implementation. The United States, which has played a central role in paving the way for AI, should now pay attention to how China is addressing this challenge. With different strengths that play to different phases of technological development, each nation has the potential to learn something from the other.

Summary

With its strong tradition of ambitious research, the United States has played a central role in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) since the 1980s and 1990s. But AI is moving past the period of pioneering foundational research and into a practical implementation phase. China has a tech-friendly culture, the ability to capture huge amounts of data and a government that places AI at the heart of its infrastructure developments. That’s why, at this stage, China is challenging the United States for the AI top spot.

Many experts claim China’s data advantages stem from the country’s huge population and the government...

About the Author

Kai-Fu Lee is a venture capitalist and former artificial intelligence researcher. He is chairman and chief executive of Sinovation Ventures, and the author of the A.I. Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order.


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