Chinese Premier warns: No country is safe from AI’s risks

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is “common wealth of mankind,” but no country is safe from its risks, Chinese Premier Li Qiang warned on Thursday as he addressed the World Artificial Intelligence Conference 2024 in Shanghai.

Calling for deepened cooperation in AI governance and the establishment of an “international mechanism with universal participation,” Li said: “The risks brought by artificial intelligence are our common challenges. No country can stay out of it.”

He stressed “safe, reliable and controllable” emerging technologies, but lamented that many developing economies have been left behind.

“The “intelligence gap” needs to be bridged, he said, and proposed joint work among nations to foster a “fair and open” environment for AI development, according to daily South China Morning Post.

According to Li, around 2.5 billion people in the world were still offline, and many developing countries “have not really benefited from the development of artificial intelligence.”

But, he added: “Artificial intelligence is the common wealth of mankind. The Chinese people have always believed that true development is when everyone develops together.”

Deputy Industry and Information Technology Minister Shan Zhongde said the number of AI companies in the country has surpassed 4,500. China's computing power scale is ranked two globally, he added.

According to a new report by a UN agency, Chinese-based inventors are filing the highest number of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) patents.

GenAI enables users to develop a diverse range of content, including text, imagery, audio, and software code, which is used to power a multitude of industrial and consumer products. These products include chatbots like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Chinese search engine Baidu’s ERNIE, said a report released Wednesday by the World Intellectual Property Organization.

Offering China's “practical experience” for the global governance of AI, Li said: “The development of AI is both a major opportunity for the world and a major global challenge. It is urgent for all countries to conduct in-depth discussions, build consensus, seize opportunities, and overcome challenges together.”