中國加速AI發展以因應對美貿易戰
Source:VOA | CHINA NEWS
China boosting development of AI for use in trade war with US
March 12, 2025 0:12 AM
由中國研發的DeepSeek 人工智慧平台一推出即獲得熱烈迴響，中國政府積極鼓勵 AI 公司將此技術應用到商業與軍事領域，以與美國等國競爭。一月底， DeepSeek 的崛起震撼華爾街，導致 Nvidia 股價重挫達 5890 億美元。近日中國推出多款新 AI 模型，而DeepSeek 在使用舊一代 Nvidia 晶片情況下仍能達到與 ChatGPT 同等效能。學者指出，中國政府正著力發展 AI，減少對高科技產品的進口依賴，此舉使中國在中美 AI 競賽中從落後一至二年縮短至僅數月差距，且在特定領域已佔有領先地位。
NEW DELHI —
Encouraged by the enthusiastic reception to its DeepSeek artificial intelligence platform in January, China's leaders are going all out to encourage AI companies to harness the power of this technology to compete with the United States and other countries in business and military spheres.
China considers AI an important tool to handle U.S. restrictions on Chinese business, particularly after DeepSeek shook up Wall Street, resulting in a loss of $589 billion for Nvidia stockholders in late January.
"The government in China works directly with the private sector and universities in the advancement and deployment of AI technology and are reducing their dependence on imports of high-technology products," said Lourdes Casanova, director of Cornell University's Emerging Markets Institute.
The past few weeks have seen China rolling out several new AI models, including Manus, which experts say can rival the latest model of ChatGPT. Industry experts were more than surprised to find that DeepSeek was equally efficient as ChatGPT, though it used older generation Nvidia chips. The U.S. has banned the supply of advanced chips.
"China and the U.S. have pulled way out front in the AI race. China used to be one to two years behind the U.S. Now, it is likely two to three months," Jeffrey Towson, owner of Beijing-based TechMoat Consulting, told VOA.
"Alibaba's Qwen is now a clear leader internationally in LLMs [large language models]. Chinese Kling AI and Minimax are arguably the global leaders in video generation," Towson said.
Government involvement
In 2017, China released an AI development program to make the country a world leader by 2030. The government's Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan said that AI would be adopted across different sectors and drive economic transformation.
"China has the most elaborate AI strategy compared to any other country," Rogier Creemers, assistant professor in Modern Chinese Studies at Leiden University in the Netherlands, told VOA.
China has established a National Computing Power Grid — somewhat like electricity grids — making it possible for Chinese AI companies to invest less in their own computing power. In the U.S., each company must fend for itself, Creemers said.
Competition
ChatGPT's updated GPT4 large language model has gotten the attention of several top-ranking CEOs of Chinese tech companies. Baidu chief Robin Li recently said his firm was under "huge pressure and a sense of crisis" after seeing the updated ChatGPT. Baidu, which has launched Ernie Bot, said "the gap [between China] and leading international levels [in the field] has widened."
"AI plus robotics is likely where China will take a commanding lead over the U.S., just like in EVs,” Towson said. “Chinese companies like Unitree are already pulling ahead. Watch for China to surprise everyone in personalized robots, industrial robots and speciality robots,” he said.
Communist Party control
Chinese President Xi Jinping recently convened a meeting with heads of private companies, including tech firms, calling on them to "show your talent" in overcoming challenges such as an economic slowdown and U.S. restrictions on Chinese business.
"There are discussions that the growth of large language models — the technology behind chatbots like DeepSeek and ChatGPT — may be hindered by media censorship, because the models will have less diverse data to work with," said Creemers.
On the other hand, the government's control ensures industrial policy coordination, which is helpful in the growth of AI in China.
China is focusing more on specialized software for health and other industries, which can largely tolerate political censorship. Chinese AI models are improving diagnostic accuracy in diverse areas from detecting rib fractures to cancer.
Language Notes
- to go all out：全力以赴 ⬆
- to shake (someone) up：使…震驚 ⬆
- to roll out：推出（新産品、服務等）；實行（新制度）；開展 ⬆
- commanding：指揮的、統帥的 ⬆
- to pull ahead：領先 ⬆
Check your comprehension!
Choose the BEST answer to each of the questions below. After you finish, highlight the parentheses to reveal the hidden answers.1. ( B ) What surprised industry experts about DeepSeek's performance?
A. It was more expensive than ChatGPT.
B. It was equally efficient as ChatGPT despite using older-generation Nvidia chips.
C. It required significantly more computing power than ChatGPT.
D. It was developed without any government support.
2. ( C ) Due to DeepSeek’s impact on Wall Street, how much did Nvidia shareholders reportedly lose?
A. $589,000
B. $589,000,000
C. $589,000,000,000
D. $589,000,000,000,000
3. ( B ) According to the article, what is the function of China’s National Computing Power Grid?
A. To sell computing power to foreign firms.
B. To enable AI companies to acquire computing infrastructure.
C. To enforce media censorship on AI development.
D. To export computing technologies to the U.S.
