Nandidni Roy Choudhury, writer
News in brief
Chinese tech companies, including industry giants and startups, gathered at the World AI Conference in Shanghai to showcase their latest innovations and support for the country’s artificial intelligence sector. Over 150 AI-related products and solutions were on display, with international companies like Tesla and Qualcomm participating. SenseTime, a company that shifted from facial recognition technology to generative AI, introduced their cutting-edge large language model (LLM) SenseNova 5.5, positioned as a competitor to OpenAI’s GPT-4o in mathematical reasoning. Despite U.S. sanctions restricting access to advanced chips, executives expressed confidence in Chinese companies’ ability to flourish in the AI sector. Zhang Ping’an, executive for Huawei’s cloud computing unit, argued that China should let go of the notion of a scarcity of cutting-edge AI chips and focus on the adoption of AI.
News in details
Shanghai – Chinese tech companies, ranging from industry giants to ambitious startups, gathered at the World AI Conference in Shanghai this week to exhibit their latest innovations and demonstrate unwavering support for the country’s artificial intelligence sector, despite the challenges posed by U.S. sanctions.
Over 150 AI-related products and solutions are on display at the conference, with a few international companies like Tesla and Qualcomm participating alongside the primarily Chinese lineup, as reported by the event organiser.
The conference has also provided a platform for several companies to showcase their cutting-edge AI products.
An interesting case is SenseTime, which used to specialise in facial recognition technology but has now turned its focus to generative AI after the launch of ChatGPT by OpenAI in late 2022.
Last Friday, the company introduced the SenseNova 5.5, their cutting-edge large language model (LLM), which is being positioned as a competitor to OpenAI’s GPT-4o in domains like mathematical reasoning.
Despite the obstacles presented by U.S. sanctions restricting access to advanced chips, numerous executives at the conference expressed unwavering confidence in the ability of Chinese companies to flourish in the AI sector.
Zhang Ping’an, the executive responsible for Huawei’s cloud computing unit, expressed at a forum that the notion of a scarcity of cutting-edge artificial intelligence chips impeding China’s goal of becoming an AI frontrunner should be discarded.
“It is undeniable that China is currently experiencing limitations in computing power,” Zhang stated. “If we want to stay at the forefront of AI, we must let go of the notion that lacking cutting-edge AI chips will hinder our progress.”
In order to tackle the issue of limited availability of state-of-the-art chips, Zhang emphasised the need for increased innovation in fields like cloud computing.
This sentiment was expressed by Liu Qingfeng, the chairman of AI company Iflytek. Similar to Huawei, Iflytek has been included in a sanctions list that prohibits it from acquiring cutting-edge chips from U.S. companies.
In an interview on the WeChat account of state-owned China News Service, Liu mentioned that several LLMs developed by Chinese companies, such as Iflytek’s, have demonstrated the ability to compete with OpenAI’s GPT-4.
“It is essential to have our own LLMs that are developed and controlled by China, capable of comparing against the highest global standards and consistently reducing the gap,” he stated.
Several industry leaders, including Baidu’s CEO Robin Li, have advocated for a shift in the AI industry’s focus. They suggest moving away from the development of LLMs, which demand significant computing power and AI chips, and instead prioritising the adoption of AI.
“Applications are essential,” Li emphasised at the conference, “Foundational models, whether open-source or closed-source, hold no value without practical use.”
Source : Reuters/ Yahoo finance
