Chinese President Xi Jinping has reaffirmed China’s commitment to advancing artificial intelligence through self-reliance and systemic innovation, as reported by state media. During a Politburo study session held on Friday, Xi emphasized that the country must intensify efforts to close the gap with global competitors and fully harness the transformative power of AI. He called for the integration of China’s “new whole national system” to accelerate technological innovation, industrial growth, and practical applications of AI. The president underscored that government support will play a key role, with increased backing for procurement policies, intellectual property protections, foundational research, and talent development.
Xi’s remarks come at a time when China is positioning itself as a serious contender to the United States in the strategic race for AI leadership. In recent years, China has rapidly advanced in AI capabilities, with the emergence of domestic players such as DeepSeek drawing international attention. In January, DeepSeek unveiled an AI reasoning model reportedly developed with less sophisticated chips and at a lower cost compared to Western counterparts. This development challenged the prevailing narrative that U.S. sanctions were significantly slowing China’s AI sector, which had been thought to lag behind following OpenAI’s launch of ChatGPT in late 2022.
Xi called for continued investment in basic research and a focused push to secure breakthroughs in core technologies, particularly in high-end semiconductors and foundational software. He stressed the importance of building an independent and collaborative ecosystem for AI that integrates both hardware and software in a secure and efficient manner. Furthermore, the president urged the acceleration of AI-related laws and regulations to ensure the technology is developed in a way that is safe, reliable, and fully controllable. A risk monitoring and emergency response framework should also be established, according to Xi, to address potential challenges that may arise from AI deployment.
In previous statements, Xi has cautioned against AI becoming an exclusive domain for wealthy nations, advocating instead for broader international governance and cooperation. He believes that global collaboration is essential to ensure equitable access and responsible development of AI technologies. These latest comments reinforce China’s ambition to establish itself not only as a global AI powerhouse but also as a thought leader in shaping the ethical and regulatory frameworks surrounding artificial intelligence.
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