Guo Jiakun
In response to the US new artificial intelligence export control measures, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday that the US has been overstretching the concept of national security, politicizing and weaponizing trade and tech issues, and abusing export controls to maliciously suppress China.
This has seriously sabotaged market rules and the international economic and trade order, destabilized global industrial and supply chain, and damaged the interests of China, the US and the business community in countries around the world. China firmly opposes the US decision and will take firm measures to safeguard the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said.
The comments came after the Biden Administration on Monday released an Interim Final Rule on Artificial Intelligence Diffusion on the website of the White House, which will further restrict artificial intelligence chip and technology exports. The new regulations will cap the number of AI chips that can be exported to most countries and allow unlimited access to US AI technology for America's closest allies, while also maintaining a block on exports to China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, Reuters reported.
Guo said that AI is humanity's common asset, and should not become "a game for the rich countries and the wealthy" or be used to generate another development divide. To maintain its supremacy, the US chooses to split the world into tiers, granting access to countries that are "close" and barring access to "the rest." The real purpose is to deprive developing countries, including China, of the right to make their own progress in science and development.
This kind of roadblock strategy hurts the global common interest of promoting AI for good, and has triggered concerns from various quarters about a new tech Cold War from the US, said Guo, noting that many US tech companies and industry associations have spoken loud and clear against the measures announced by the Biden administration.
Guo emphasized that China is an active advocate and practitioner of AI global governance. "We put forward the Global Initiative for AI Governance, facilitated UNGA adoption by consensus of the resolution on AI capacity-building, and established the group of friends for international cooperation on AI capacity-building," the spokesperson said.
China will continue to work with all parties to embrace openness, connectivity and equality instead of building walls, decoupling and discrimination, create an open, inclusive, and non-discriminatory environment for AI development that is beneficial to all, and make sure that all countries can access the benefit of AI, Guo said.
Global Times