Sam Altman, Chief Executive Officer of OpenAI, said that China should become one of the main participants in the discussion on the development of artificial intelligence and the strategy of applying advanced technologies in the space of human life.
Last weekend, Altman, being a participant in a conference in Beijing via video link, also noted that as the power of AI-based systems grows, the stakes for global cooperation are growing in parallel, which has already reached a peak level. His company, OpenAI, which presented last year ChatGPT, launched the hype around artificial intelligence.
In China and Silicon Valley, talent and investment converge on a common goal-setting point, which is AI, which has already become a strategic area that in the future can determine the deepening technological rivalry between the two largest economies in the world. Also, advances in artificial intelligence have become a kind of indicator of tension in the efforts of world governments aimed at regulating this industry. Chinese President Xi Jinping said that in order to minimize national security risks, it is necessary to strengthen state regulation of the AI sphere.
Altman, speaking at a conference organized by the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence, noted that Chinese AI specialists are among the best in the world. He also stated that in the process of solving the problems of coordinating advanced artificial intelligence systems, the best minds from all over the world are needed.
Altman’s speech last weekend has a symbolic meaning in a certain sense since the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence firmly positions itself as a player in the AI sector. A Chinese non-profit organization supported by the country’s Ministry of Science and Technology and the local city government has been vetted by Microsoft. President of the technology corporation Brad Smith is one of the leaders in the field of innovation in the sphere of artificial intelligence.
The AI-based chatbot, which was developed by the OpenAI team and named ChatGPT, is currently unavailable to Chinese users. In China, due to the rules governing data collection and imposing censorship restrictions, there is no possibility to use the services of Western technology giants, including, for example, Google and Facebook. Experts say that the complex concept of a system of legislative control in the field of data and algorithms will also become a significant barrier to the introduction of artificial intelligence in the country.
China’s technical supervisory authority has indicated in the draft regulatory guidelines that the responsibility for compliance with the requirements for algorithms and content in the country will largely become the responsibility of platform operators. In early June, the State Council announced plans to start discussing the creation of a legislative framework to control the field of artificial intelligence. This discussion will begin before the end of 2023.
Altman said at the conference that OpenAI plans to increase the number of open-source AI models used. According to him, these plans are coordinated with the intention to ensure the security of artificial intelligence. Altman did not name specific deadlines for the implementation of these aspirations.
The speech of the head of OpenAI in Beijing was part of the Asian stage of his global tour to promote artificial intelligence management. At the end of May, during his stay in London, Altman said that his company may decide to cease activity in the European market if the norms proposed by local legislators on the responsibility of firms for the ways of using their AI systems will come into force.
As we have reported earlier, OpenAI CEO Calls For Global Cooperation to Regulate AI.
