Chinese Tech Giants Expand AI Teams in Silicon Valley, Challenging US Restrictions

China Turns to Silicon Valley to Bolster Homegrown AI Firms | PYMNTS.com

Chinese tech giants are reportedly using Silicon Valley to recruit for their AI projects. Companies such as ByteDance and Alibaba have recently begun expanding their offices in California as they seek to poach workers from American competitors for their generative artificial intelligence (AI) efforts, the Financial Times reported Tuesday (Nov. 19). This push is happening in spite of attempts by the U.S. to hinder Chinese companies. The U.S. has banned exports of Nvidia AI chips, key to developing AI models. And the Department of Commerce has proposed a rule that would require cloud providers to verify the identity of users training AI models and report on their activities. The U.S. also recently ordered Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) to cease shipments of certain advanced microchips to its Chinese customers, a move designed to block off China's access to high-performance technology critical for AI development. Sources told the FT that Alibaba has approached engineers, product managers and AI researchers who have worked at OpenAI and some of America's largest tech companies. One source said that the company is putting together a team focused on Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group's AI-powered search engine Accio for merchants. And a former OpenAI researcher told the news outlet they had been inundated with messages from Chinese tech firms -- including Alibaba and the food delivery platform Meituan -- seeking information about their background and offering employment opportunities. Meituan has begun trying to bolster its team in California after executives became worried it was falling behind in the AI race, two sources told the FT. ByteDance, owner of video platform TikTok, has the strongest foothold in Silicon Valley, the report said, with several teams working on different products. Meanwhile, PYMNTS earlier this year examined the pressures facing Silicon Valley as Chinese companies cut prices on their AI models. Experts say this shift could democratize AI capabilities, letting smaller startups compete with tech titans and traditional businesses to overhaul their operations with the latest technology. "We will see significantly more competitiveness since much VC investment is going toward 'picks-and-shovels' AI technologies, and we should see more global pricing wars, which will be good," Nick Rioux, co-founder and CTO of the AI company Labviva, told PYMNTS. "When market forces impact technology innovation, we can create more use cases for a broader, more diverse set of applications. This is good and relatively unexpected when looking at how China has managed technological governance in the past."

Chinese tech groups build AI teams in Silicon Valley

China's biggest technology groups are building artificial intelligence teams in Silicon Valley, seeking to hire top US talent despite Washington's efforts to curb the country's development of the cutting-edge technology. Alibaba, ByteDance and Meituan have been expanding their offices in California in recent months, seeking to poach staff from rival US groups who could help them make up ground in the race to profit from generative AI. The push comes despite US efforts to stymie their work. Chinese groups have been hit by a US ban on exports of the highest-end Nvidia AI chips, which are crucial for developing AI models. There are currently no restrictions on US-based entities related to or owned by Chinese tech companies accessing high-end AI chips through data centres located in the US. However, the Department of Commerce proposed introducing a rule in January that cloud providers have to verify the identity of users training AI models and report their activities. Alibaba is recruiting an AI team in Sunnyvale in California's San Francisco Bay Area and has approached engineers, product managers and AI researchers who have worked at OpenAI and the biggest US tech groups, according to three people familiar with the matter. China's biggest ecommerce group has posted recruitment advertisements on LinkedIn for an applied scientist, machine-learning engineer and product marketing manager in the US. The team will focus on Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group's AI-powered search engine Accio for merchants, another person added. One Alibaba recruiter emailed tech workers in the US saying the Chinese ecommerce company planned to spin off the Californian AI team into a separate start-up, according to two people familiar with the matter. Alibaba did not respond to a request for comment. One former researcher at OpenAI said they had been bombarded with messages from Chinese tech companies -- including approaches from food delivery platform Meituan and Alibaba -- trying to learn more information about their experience at the company as well as offering job opportunities. In the past few months, Meituan has been building out its team in California after executives grew alarmed that it was falling behind on AI, according to two people familiar with the matter. Chief executive Wang Xing has tapped co-founder Wang Huiwen to return to the company to lead a new generative AI team called GN06, which is exploring AI-related opportunities, including menu translation features and AI companions, according to one of the people. Some team members are splitting their time between the Bay Area and Beijing, the person added. Chinese media site 36Kr first reported news that Wang was in charge of a new AI unit in Meituan. Meituan did not respond to a request for comment. TikTok owner ByteDance has the most established AI footprint in California, with multiple teams working on different projects. One research team is focused on integrating AI features into TikTok. It also has a group of researchers working on its Doubao large language model, alongside colleagues in China and Singapore, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. California-based employees report to Zhu Wenjia, who is in charge of model development and is primarily based in Beijing. He previously led product and engineering at TikTok. ByteDance did not respond to a comment. Smaller Chinese AI start-ups have also established a footprint in the US, recruiting engineers with experience working at leading research laboratories and companies in the area. Wu Yuxin, one of the co-founders of Moonshot AI, is based in San Francisco, according to his LinkedIn profile. He previously worked at Meta, Cruise and then on multi-modal research at Google Brain, before co-founding the Beijing-based unicorn. He is now working on large multimodal models at Moonshot, which owns a popular AI chatbot called Kimi that has gained traction in China, according to people familiar with the matter and his website. Moonshot did not respond to a request for comment. Baidu, which operates China's biggest search engine, used to run one of the leading AI research labs in Silicon Valley, employing top scientists and engineers working on areas including speech recognition and autonomous driving. At its peak in 2017, Baidu employed several hundred people at the US research and development centre, with high-profile leaders including Adam Coates and Andrew Ng holding leadership positions. An exodus of leading staff due to internal conflict at the company and deteriorating relations between Washington and Beijing prompted Baidu to significantly reduce its operation there, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.

China's Tech Giants Alibaba, ByteDance, And Meituan Are Expanding Their Silicon Valley AI Footprints Amid US Efforts To Block Progress: Here's Why - Alibaba Gr Hldgs (NYSE:BABA), Meituan (OTC:MPNGF)

China's leading tech firms, Alibaba BABA, ByteDance, and Meituan MPNGY MPNGF, are reportedly expanding their AI teams in Silicon Valley. What Happened: These Chinese tech giants have been growing their California-based offices recently, to attract top U.S. talent to help them gain an edge in the lucrative AI sector, reported Financial Times. Alibaba is hiring engineers, product managers, and AI researchers for its search engine AI, Accio, as part of its broader push in international commerce. Meituan is building a team focused on features like AI-powered menu translations. ByteDance continues to develop its Doubao language model and integrate AI into TikTok. See Also: Elon Musk Says AI Will Surpass Doctors, Lawyers After ChatGPT Tops Medical Diagnoses -- Humans Becoming 'Biological' Backups This expansion comes despite a U.S. ban on exports of high-end Nvidia Corporation's NVDA AI chips, essential for AI model development, to Chinese companies. There are no restrictions on U.S.-based entities related to or owned by Chinese tech companies accessing high-end AI chips through U.S. data centers. However, the Department of Commerce proposed a rule in January requiring cloud providers to verify the identity of users training AI models and report their activities, the report noted. Subscribe to the Benzinga Tech Trends newsletter to get all the latest tech developments delivered to your inbox. Why It Matters: The expansion of these Chinese tech giants in Silicon Valley comes amid escalating U.S.-China tensions. Following the re-election of Donald Trump, there were concerns about a potential comprehensive trade conflict between the two nations. Trump's proposed 60% tariff on Chinese goods was predicted to impact Chinese companies significantly. Following Trump's win, several U.S.-listed Chinese stocks, including Alibaba, JD, and Nio, declined. However, Chinese President Xi Jinping has expressed China's willingness to collaborate with the U.S. government, regardless of the administration in power. "China is ready to work with the U.S. government to maintain dialogue, expand co-operation and manage differences . . . for the benefit of the two peoples," Xi told President Joe Biden at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Lima. Image via Wikimedia Commons Check out more of Benzinga's Consumer Tech coverage by following this link. Read Next: Consumer Tech News (November 11-15): Apple Plans To Launch An AI Wall Tablet, Meta Plans To Introduce Ads On Threads & More Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs