China's Xi Jinping Calls for AI Self-Reliance Amid US Rivalry

China's Xi calls for self sufficiency in AI development amid U.S. rivalry

HONG KONG, April 26 (Reuters) - China's President Xi Jinping pledged "self-reliance and self-strengthening" to develop AI in China, state media reported on Saturday, as the country vies with the U.S. for supremacy in artificial intelligence, a key strategic area. Speaking at a Politburo meeting study session on Friday, Xi said China should leverage its "new whole national system" to push forward with the development of AI. "We must recognise the gaps and redouble our efforts to comprehensively advance technological innovation, industrial development, and AI-empowered applications," said Xi, according to the official Xinhua news agency. Xi noted policy support would be provided in areas such as government procurement, intellectual property rights, research and cultivating talent. Some experts say China has narrowed the AI development gap with the United States over the past year. The Chinese AI startup DeepSeek drew global attention when it launched an AI reasoning model in January that it said was trained with less advanced chips and was cheaper to develop than its Western rivals. China has also made inroads in infrastructure software engineering. The DeepSeek announcement challenged the assumption that U.S. sanctions were holding back China's AI sector amid a fierce geopolitical tech rivalry, and that China lagged the U.S. after the breakthrough launch of OpenAI's ChatGPT in late 2022. "We must continue to strengthen basic research, concentrate our efforts on mastering core technologies such as high-end chips and basic software, and build an independent, controllable, and collaborative artificial intelligence basic software and hardware system," Xi said. He added that AI regulations and laws should be speeded up to build a "risk warning and emergency response system, to ensure that artificial intelligence is safe, reliable, and controllable." Xi said last year that AI shouldn't be a "game of rich countries and the wealthy," while calling for more international governance and cooperation on AI. Reporting by James Pomfret and Summer Zhen in Hong Kong; Editing by Kate Mayberry Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab Suggested Topics:Artificial Intelligence James Pomfret Thomson Reuters James Pomfret is a Special Correspondent for Reuters covering politics and policy in Asia, with a specialization on China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. A two-time Pulitzer finalist, his multimedia career has spanned print, radio, TV and photography. His reporting includes "The Revolt of Hong Kong" - an investigative series he helped lead that was a Pulitzer finalist for International Reporting in 2020, and a series on China's weaponization of the rule of law against its critics that won a 2023 SOPA award. Summer Zhen Thomson Reuters Summer Zhen is a Hong Kong-based correspondent for Reuters, specializing in hedge funds and financial markets in Asia. She has over a decade of experience in financial journalism and the finance industry. Before joining Reuters, Summer was an investor relations professional at a hedge fund and worked as a business reporter for the South China Morning Post. She was the winner of Best Young Reporter at the 2014 Hong Kong News Awards.

Xi says China must 'overcome' AI chip challenges

President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips, state media reported Saturday, as Beijing seeks to become a world leader in the rapidly developing industry. China aims to dominate the artificial intelligence sector, a goal complicated by the trade standoff with Washington that could further deprive Chinese industry of certain key technologies. The world's two leading economies are locked in an escalating tit-for-tat trade battle triggered by US President Donald Trump's new levies on Chinese goods, which have reached 145% on many products. Beijing has responded with new 125% duties on imports from the United States. In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency. Xi made the remarks during a quarterly meeting of the Politburo, the inner circle of China's top leaders. Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI models have proliferated in the United States and China. Chinese startup DeepSeek shook up the AI world in January with its R1 chatbot, matching the performance of its US competitors at a lower cost. 'Promote self-reliance' But Xi acknowledged Friday that the Chinese industry still had "gaps". It was "essential" to "promote self-reliance" in the field, he added. Political support was essential to achieve this, Xi stressed, citing in particular "a combination of policies such as intellectual property rights, taxation, public procurement, and the opening up of infrastructure". Under Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden, Washington has banned or restricted exports to China of advanced processors which are known for helping develop high-end AI models. The Trump administration has imposed new licensing requirements to export to China some chips used in AI, which US firms Nvidia and AMD have said will hit them hard. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang visited Beijing this month and said he was "willing to continue to plow deeply into the Chinese market and play a positive role in promoting US-China trade cooperation", Xinhua reported. Washington's controls are officially imposed in order to prevent China developing military technologies, but they also allow the United States to maintain its competitive edge. China's AI ambitions have prompted concern in numerous countries worried about the handling of personal data, particularly the possibility that such information could be transferred to Chinese authorities.

Xi says China must 'overcome' AI chip challenges

Beijing (AFP) - President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips, state media reported Saturday, as Beijing seeks to become a world leader in the rapidly developing industry. China aims to dominate the artificial intelligence sector, a goal complicated by the trade standoff with Washington that could further deprive Chinese industry of certain key technologies. The world's two leading economies are locked in an escalating tit-for-tat trade battle triggered by US President Donald Trump's new levies on Chinese goods, which have reached 145 percent on many products. Beijing has responded with new 125 percent duties on imports from the United States. In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency. Xi made the remarks during a quarterly meeting of the Politburo, the inner circle of China's top leaders. Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI models have proliferated in the United States and China. Chinese startup DeepSeek shook up the AI world in January with its R1 chatbot, matching the performance of its US competitors at a lower cost. 'Promote self-reliance' But Xi acknowledged Friday that the Chinese industry still had "gaps". It was "essential" to "promote self-reliance" in the field, he added. Political support was essential to achieve this, Xi stressed, citing in particular "a combination of policies such as intellectual property rights, taxation, public procurement, and the opening up of infrastructure". Under Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden, Washington has banned or restricted exports to China of advanced processors which are known for helping develop high-end AI models. The Trump administration has imposed new licensing requirements to export to China some chips used in AI, which US firms Nvidia and AMD have said will hit them hard. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang visited Beijing this month and said he was "willing to continue to plough deeply into the Chinese market and play a positive role in promoting US-China trade cooperation", Xinhua reported. Washington's controls are officially imposed in order to prevent China developing military technologies, but they also allow the United States to maintain its competitive edge. China's AI ambitions have prompted concern in numerous countries worried about the handling of personal data, particularly the possibility that such information could be transferred to Chinese authorities.

China's Xi calls for self sufficiency in AI development amid US rivalry

Some experts say China has narrowed the AI development gap with the United States over the past year. The Chinese AI startup DeepSeek drew global attention when it launched an AI reasoning model in January that it said was trained with less advanced chips and was cheaper to develop than its Western rivals.China's President Xi Jinping pledged "self-reliance and self-strengthening" to develop AI in China, state media reported on Saturday, as the country vies with the U.S. for supremacy in artificial intelligence, a key strategic area. Speaking at a Politburo meeting study session on Friday, Xi said China should leverage its "new whole national system" to push forward with the development of AI. "We must recognise the gaps and redouble our efforts to comprehensively advance technological innovation, industrial development, and AI-empowered applications," said Xi, according to the official Xinhua news agency. Xi noted policy support would be provided in areas such as government procurement, intellectual property rights, research and cultivating talent. Some experts say China has narrowed the AI development gap with the United States over the past year. The Chinese AI startup DeepSeek drew global attention when it launched an AI reasoning model in January that it said was trained with less advanced chips and was cheaper to develop than its Western rivals. China has also made inroads in infrastructure software engineering. The DeepSeek announcement challenged the assumption that U.S. sanctions were holding back China's AI sector amid a fierce geopolitical tech rivalry, and that China lagged the U.S. after the breakthrough launch of OpenAI's ChatGPT in late 2022. "We must continue to strengthen basic research, concentrate our efforts on mastering core technologies such as high-end chips and basic software, and build an independent, controllable, and collaborative artificial intelligence basic software and hardware system," Xi said. He added that AI regulations and laws should be speeded up to build a "risk warning and emergency response system, to ensure that artificial intelligence is safe, reliable, and controllable." Xi said last year that AI shouldn't be a "game of rich countries and the wealthy," while calling for more international governance and cooperation on AI.

China's Xi Jinping says China must 'overcome' AI chip challenges

President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips, state media reported Saturday, as Beijing seeks to become a world leader in the rapidly developing industry. In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency.President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips, state media reported Saturday, as Beijing seeks to become a world leader in the rapidly developing industry. China aims to dominate the artificial intelligence sector, a goal complicated by the trade standoff with Washington that could further deprive Chinese industry of certain key technologies. The world's two leading economies are locked in an escalating tit-for-tat trade battle triggered by US President Donald Trump's new levies on Chinese goods, which have reached 145 percent on many products. Beijing has responded with new 125 percent duties on imports from the United States. In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency. Xi made the remarks during a quarterly meeting of the Politburo, the inner circle of China's top leaders. Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI models have proliferated in the United States and China. Chinese startup DeepSeek shook up the AI world in January with its R1 chatbot, matching the performance of its US competitors at a lower cost. 'Promote self-reliance' But Xi acknowledged Friday that the Chinese industry still had "gaps". It was "essential" to "promote self-reliance" in the field, he added. Political support was essential to achieve this, Xi stressed, citing in particular "a combination of policies such as intellectual property rights, taxation, public procurement, and the opening up of infrastructure". Under Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden, Washington has banned or restricted exports to China of advanced processors which are known for helping develop high-end AI models. The Trump administration has imposed new licensing requirements to export to China some chips used in AI, which US firms Nvidia and AMD have said will hit them hard. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang visited Beijing this month and said he was "willing to continue to plough deeply into the Chinese market and play a positive role in promoting US-China trade cooperation", Xinhua reported. Washington's controls are officially imposed in order to prevent China developing military technologies, but they also allow the United States to maintain its competitive edge. China's AI ambitions have prompted concern in numerous countries worried about the handling of personal data, particularly the possibility that such information could be transferred to Chinese authorities.

China's Xi calls for self sufficiency in AI development amid U.S. rivalry

HONG KONG (Reuters) -China's President Xi Jinping pledged "self-reliance and self-strengthening" to develop AI in China, state media reported on Saturday, as the country vies with the U.S. for supremacy in artificial intelligence, a key strategic area. Speaking at a Politburo meeting study session on Friday, Xi said China should leverage its "new whole national system" to push forward with the development of AI. "We must recognise the gaps and redouble our efforts to comprehensively advance technological innovation, industrial development, and AI-empowered applications," said Xi, according to the official Xinhua news agency. Xi noted policy support would be provided in areas such as government procurement, intellectual property rights, research and cultivating talent. Some experts say China has narrowed the AI development gap with the United States over the past year. The Chinese AI startup DeepSeek drew global attention when it launched an AI reasoning model in January that it said was trained with less advanced chips and was cheaper to develop than its Western rivals. China has also made inroads in infrastructure software engineering. The DeepSeek announcement challenged the assumption that U.S. sanctions were holding back China's AI sector amid a fierce geopolitical tech rivalry, and that China lagged the U.S. after the breakthrough launch of OpenAI's ChatGPT in late 2022. "We must continue to strengthen basic research, concentrate our efforts on mastering core technologies such as high-end chips and basic software, and build an independent, controllable, and collaborative artificial intelligence basic software and hardware system," Xi said. He added that AI regulations and laws should be speeded up to build a "risk warning and emergency response system, to ensure that artificial intelligence is safe, reliable, and controllable." Xi said last year that AI shouldn't be a "game of rich countries and the wealthy," while calling for more international governance and cooperation on AI. (Reporting by James Pomfret and Summer Zhen in Hong Kong; Editing by Kate Mayberry)

Xi says China must 'overcome' AI chip challenges: state media

BEIJING (AFP) - President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips, state media reported Saturday, as Beijing seeks to become a world leader in the rapidly developing industry. China aims to dominate the artificial intelligence sector, a goal complicated by the trade standoff with Washington that could further deprive Chinese industry of certain key technologies. The world's two leading economies are locked in an escalating tit-for-tat trade battle triggered by US President Donald Trump's new levies on Chinese goods, which have reached 145 percent on many products. Beijing has responded with new 125 per cent duties on imports from the United States. In this context, Xi called for "continuing to strengthen basic research, focusing our efforts on overcoming challenges in key technologies such as advanced chips and core software, and building an autonomous AI system," according to Xinhua news agency. Xi made the remarks during a quarterly meeting of the Politburo, the inner circle of China's top leaders. Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI models have proliferated in the United States and China. Chinese startup DeepSeek shook up the AI world in January with its R1 chatbot, matching the performance of its US competitors at a lower cost. But Xi acknowledged Friday that the Chinese industry still had "gaps". It was "essential" to "promote self-reliance" in the field, he added. Political support was essential to achieve this, Xi stressed, citing in particular "a combination of policies such as intellectual property rights, taxation, public procurement, and the opening up of infrastructure".