Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) member U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) contends that the United States currently holds the advantage in the AI race against China.
"The United States has a huge advantage when it comes to AI. China tells the AI models, ‘Don’t talk about the Tiananmen Square massacre.’ You’re not going to get AI to work effectively when you have the CCP regulating the inputs." - Ro Khanna, State of California
Earlier this month, China unveiled its intentions to boost its computing power by 50% within the next few years. Technologies such as semiconductors and AI have emerged as the main focus in the ongoing technological competition between the United States and China. However, China's access to U.S. intelligence has faced challenges in recent years due to the United States' implementation of export controls on chips and various other technologies, according to CNBC.
On Oct. 7 of last year, regulations were put in place concerning U.S. chips to prevent the People's Republic of China (PRC) from acquiring them. These rules specifically limited access to "advanced computing chips, supercomputers, and advanced semiconductors". The restrictions were implemented due to concerns that the PRC might exploit such chips for military purposes and technological advancement, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security.
In July, the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) reached out to several U.S. Venture Capital Firms, including GGV Capital, GST Ventures, Qualcomm Ventures, and Walden International. The committee took this action in response to reports of the firms' investments in Chinese AI, semiconductor, and quantum companies. The investments made by American firms in these companies raise concerns, particularly in light of the advancements in AI technology that could potentially be used in instances of human rights abuse and for advancing military capabilities by the People's Republic of China (PRC), according to a press release from the Select Committee on the CCP.
The United States has maintained its front-runner position in the AI race since 2013, with China closely trailing in second place, and the United Kingdom securing the third spot. In the past year, the United States investment in AI totaled over 500 AI startups accumulating nearly $50 billion in non-government funding, according to Visual Capitalist.
"Whoever wins the artificial intelligence race is going to have a very dominant position in the world," said Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.), according to an interview with Fox Business. "Artificial intelligence is going to be the way that the wars are fought in the future. Wars will be fought in the future with robots, automated vehicles, unmanned vehicles, and artificial intelligence is key to all of that. We have to win this race for artificial intelligence."
