Discussions of Chinese artificial intelligence often center around the trope of a U.S.-China arms race. On this month’s FLI podcast, we’re moving beyond this narrative and taking a closer look at the realities of AI in China and what they really mean for the United States. Experts Helen Toner and Elsa Kania, both of Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology, discuss China’s rise as a world AI power, the relationship between the Chinese tech industry and the military, and the use of AI in human rights abuses by the Chinese government. They also touch on Chinese-American technological collaboration, technological difficulties facing China, and what may determine international competitive advantage going forward.

Topics discussed in this episode include:

The rise of AI in China

The escalation of tensions between U.S. and China in AI realm

Chinese AI Development plans and policy initiatives

The AI arms race narrative and the problems with it

Civil-military fusion in China vs. U.S.

The regulation of Chinese-American technological collaboration

AI and authoritarianism

Openness in AI research and when it is (and isn’t) appropriate

The relationship between privacy and advancement in AI