World News by Wild Rose

Researchers from China’s leading universities and tech giants are setting their sights on a crucial new front in the AI race with the US: developing systems capable of building better versions of themselves without human intervention. In a joint paper published on Thursday, researchers from ByteDance, Tsinghua University and the Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, among others, outlined a five-stage road map for recursive self-improvement (RSI). The study, titled “The Last AI Built by...

Calls by US tech leaders for a voluntary slowdown in artificial intelligence development have run into sharp pushback from Chinese researchers and state media, who question whether the proposal is a genuine push for responsibility or an effort to entrench America’s technological lead. The debate intensified on Monday when OpenAI CEO Sam Altman joined a growing chorus of Silicon Valley leaders demanding industry-wide “pacing”, warning that competitive pressure must not override safety as AI...

Scientists have developed a lightweight, battery-free device that could help improve the mobility of people with difficulty walking, such as stroke survivors. Developed by researchers in Hong Kong and mainland China, the neural prosthesis uses energy generated by the wearer’s own movements to electrically stimulate their muscles, helping to flex their ankle and restore their natural walking pattern. This could prevent falls for stroke survivors, elderly individuals and others living with...

Bloomberg's Yvonne Man speaks with Artificial Analysis's Micah Hill-Smith about the AI race, China's role in it, and the growing debate over model safety. (Source: Bloomberg)

China could improve its image in the United States by highlighting areas such as tourism and technology and positioning itself as a responsible major power, a survey has concluded. Researchers from Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou said that although concepts such as “decoupling” and “de-risking” had been increasingly prominent in media coverage of China, this had not entirely wiped away positive impressions of the country. When evaluating China’s strengths on a scale of 1 to 5, the...

In the final instalment of our series of previews on the five-year plan and policy address, to be announced on September 16, Natalie Wong and Matthew Cheng look at how national security spans areas such as finance and technology and what Hong Kong must do to earn Beijing’s trust. Read part one here, part two here, part three here and part four here. With the recent sentencing of former leaders of Hong Kong’s Tiananmen Square vigil concluding a key high-profile subversion case, it would be easy...

Chinese scientists say they have devised a new technique for refining oil that cuts the amount of energy consumed during the process by roughly 90 per cent. If the technology used in the study could be scaled up for industry, it would not only greatly reduce production costs and emissions, but also make the process more precise and boost product value. Crude oil cannot be turned directly into petrol or plastics. Instead, refineries must separate it into different parts before each one can be put...

Artificial intelligence agents are increasingly taking the wheel in designing China’s next-generation semiconductors, as Beijing and domestic technology firms accelerate efforts to integrate AI into chip design software to bolster national self-sufficiency. Empyrean Technology, China’s top maker of electronic design automation (EDA) tools, has been accelerating the chip design process by using AI-optimised algorithms and agentic tools, according to company chairman Liu Weiping. By applying an AI...

Beijing has urged the United States to “immediately stop all espionage activities” targeting Chinese companies, warning that it had “firm resolve and abundant means” to retaliate after a senior CIA official defended spying on China’s artificial intelligence (AI) and chip sectors. The call from China’s Ministry of Commerce comes just two weeks ahead of President Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington, where AI and advanced technologies – the new battleground in the US-China rivalry – are expected to be...

China is set to secure its place among the global automotive powerhouses by 2030 through further efforts to boost domestic sales and foster technological innovation, while a capacity alert mechanism will be introduced to guard against disorderly competition. The ambitious targets and actions are laid out in the country’s 15th five-year plan for the development of the intelligent connected new-energy-vehicle industry, unveiled on Thursday by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and...

If mastering drone-swarm technology was not difficult enough, China is now tackling the more complex task of integrating uncrewed land, sea and air platforms, according to the country’s leading developer in the field. In an article posted on China Electronics Technology Group Corporation’s (CETC) social media account on Sunday, the company’s Intelligent Technology Research Institute said drone-swarm technology was not merely “many drones flying together”, but an intelligent, distributed combat...

As Shenzhen gears up for November’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit, the southern Chinese province in which it sits, Guangdong, is making sure its technological prowess also gains global attention. At Saturday’s Asia-Pacific Media Forum, a major media gathering before the summit, a hall was packed with hi-tech products from the province, ranging from a BYD car, DJI drones and Tencent Holdings’ artificial intelligence products, to smartphones from Honor and Vivo. Before the main...

There is little in common between Daron Acemoglu and Xi Jinping. As a strong advocate of the Western model of liberal democracy, Acemoglu, co-recipient of the 2024 Nobel Prize in economics, may be considered the ideological opposite of the Chinese president. But on a crucial point about China’s future, the two may, strangely, be on the same page: an across-the-board introduction of cutting-edge technology may enhance productivity and maintain economic growth. It may counteract the negative...

Tesla is facing weaker sales in China this year, but the American electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer is looking to generate a buzz in its second-largest market by exhibiting its new self-driving vehicle, the Cybercab. The robotaxi – which operates entirely without a steering wheel, pedals or rear-view mirrors – would debut in major Chinese cities, including Beijing and Shanghai, starting mid-September in a showcase of product design and technological sophistication, according to Tesla...

One by one, Tesla Model Y Ls roll out of the company’s end-of-line inspection bays, gleaming in black, white and gold. They are a mix of left-hand and right-hand drive – one of many signs the electric vehicles (EVs) produced here are destined for ports around the world. The company touts a total assembly time of less than 40 seconds at its sprawling Gigafactory in Lingang, a coastal area on the far southeastern edge of Shanghai. From there, Tesla says, a finished car can reach the port and be...

China’s science and technology minister Yin Hejun has called for global cooperation to manage the opportunities and risks posed by artificial intelligence, as Beijing and Washington face renewed trade and tech tensions ahead of a planned meeting between their leaders later this month. Speaking at the G20 Innovation Ministerial Meeting held in the United States, Yin said the development of AI and other emerging technologies had entered an “unprecedentedly active” period, with opportunities and...