Why China Is Winning the AI Arms Race and Why Everyone Else Should Be Worried

Numerous countries are currently locked in a new arms race, which involves artificial intelligence. Participants include the U.K., Russia, and of course, China. The U.S. has the private sector as its representative, so counting it is a bit complicated. In any case, China currently has a huge lead and there are several reasons for this. There could also be reasons for why this should worry everyone else.

In a recent feature coverage of the topic by Fortune, the publication notes many of the reasons why China is currently ahead of the AI arms race. The country is currently capable of catching criminals anywhere at any time using AI. Traffic police can catch jaywalkers and the like using AI. Schools can even monitor children using AI.

Suffice it to say, China is incorporating its machine learning technology into as many aspects of its citizens’ daily lives as possible. This is in line with the vision that the country’s leader, President Xi Jinping, has in achieving dominance through AI. Is it really any wonder that the nation’s machine technology would advance at breakneck speeds?

As for how China is actually able to advance its AI technology so far so fast, experts apparently put it down to “structural advantages.” This basically refers to the significant investments in data and computing power, as well as in actual skilled workers in the field of computer engineering.

However, Futurism notes that the real advantage that China has over others is its unobstructed, nearly universal access to information. Specifically, information with regards to its people.

Chinese authorities currently have sweeping powers to spy on their people without any obvious restrictions, even if simply to respect their privacy. With so much access to this data, China has removed one of the biggest barriers that are currently holding back AI research everywhere else.

Basically, the Asian giant is winning because it lacks scruples about abusing its population’s rights to privacy. This should worry everyone else because other governments and private companies might start toying with the idea as well. The recent Cambridge Analytica scandal proves that Facebook can be a goldmine for such data.