China's AI industry ready to lead the world
- By Rabi Sankar Bosu
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E-mail China.org.cn, July 23, 2017
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Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is widely seen as the next frontier of innovation and growth, expected to be the biggest driving force in human history in the next 30 to 50 years with China assuming world leadership. [Xinhua] |
Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is widely seen as the next frontier of innovation and growth, expected to be the biggest driving force in human history in the next 30 to 50 years with China assuming world leadership.
With its considerable strength in AI research and development, it has become a powerhouse of innovation in deep learning, sensors, predictive maintenance, medical imaging and intelligent robotics.
According to the Wuzhen Institute in Hangzhou, China was the world’s second biggest investor in AI enterprises last year, injecting US$2.6 billion into the sector compared to America’s US$17.9 billion. That still leaves a big gap, but China is rapidly catching up.
According to a report by the China Internet Network Center in late January, as of December 2016, China had 731 million Internet users, equal to the population of the European Union, with an Internet penetration rate of 53.2 percent.
Chinese internet users are highly responsive to new technologies. This creates a clear edge in artificial intelligence no other country can rival. Indeed, in recent years, the country has been playing an important role in innovation and growth.
According to a report of the consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, AI will contribute US$15.7 trillion to the global economy in 2030 and China will be among the biggest beneficiaries, with a 26 percent boost in its GDP by then.
The Chinese government attaches great importance to Artificial Intelligence 2.0. The 13th Five Year Plan (2016-2020), and the Made in China 2025 program, Robotics Industry Development Plan, and Three-year Guidance for Internet Plus Artificial Intelligence Plan (2016-2018) are all contributing to boosting research and development.
During the opening meeting of the fifth session of China's 12th National People's Congress (NPC) on March 5, Premier Li Keqiang announced in his Government Work Report China’s strong determination to support AI growth.
"We will accelerate R&D on and commercialization of new materials, artificial intelligence, integrated circuits, bio-pharmacy, 5G mobile communications, and other technologies, and develop industrial clusters in these fields." This was a clear message China intends to assume worldwide leadership in technology.
As part of the "Made in China 2025" plan, the government has pinpointed AI as a key area for advancement. During the first World Intelligence Congress in Tianjin, north China, on June 29, 2017, Minister of Science and Technology Wan Gang revealed the intention to roll out a slate of important artificial intelligence projects and step up efforts to cultivate AI talents to gain a lead in the cutting-edge technology.
The National Development and Reform Commission launched its first national engineering laboratory for big data distribution and exchange technologies on March 11. It is formed by China’s biggest online search engine, Baidu, in partnership with the elite Tsinghua and Beihang universities, working together to boost the country’s digital economy to compete in the global market.
According to the Xinhua News Agency, China plans to expand its artificial intelligence products market to over US$15 billion by 2018 by speeding up the manufacturing of products like robots, home appliances and mobile phones as part of efforts to develop new technologies to upgrade the structure and performance of the real economy.
Chinese technology companies have already created AI systems in their core businesses with measurable impact on human lives and are not lagging behind in artificial intelligence applications offered by American high-tech giants.
Undoubtedly, China’s top three Internet companies, Baidu, Tencent Holding and Alibaba Group, are playing an important role in advancing artificial intelligence, from facial recognition to more futuristic incarnations like self-driving vehicles.
The Baidu online search engine is investing billions of dollars annually in AI technology. Baidu has an advantage especially in voice and image recognition, with recognition rates just below 100 percent. Its AI “Baidu Brain” beat top human contestants in voice and image recognition last January 6.
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has launched “City Brain,” an artificial intelligence hub using big data to help build smart cities. In September 2015, Tencent stunned the media world with its robot journalist, called "Dreamwriter." According to media reports, the robot produces a 1,000-word news report in one minute. Tencent achieved a record face recognition rate of 99.65 percent in LFW (Labeled Faces in the Wild) Database last June.
However, AI technology may lead the world in the fields of transportation system, education, medical care etc, but with it comes the responsibility towards humankind, as Chinese President Xi Jinping warned in his speech at the 12th G20 Hamburg Summit on July 7, 2017.
He said: “According to the projections of the World Economic Forum, artificial intelligence will wipe out more than five million jobs in the world by 2020, requiring adherence to the principle ‘AI for the people, by the people’.”
Rabi Sankar Bosu, Secretary of New Horizon Radio Listeners' Club, West Bengal, India
Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors only, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
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