9 What appeared instead was “brain science and brain-inspired research” defined as “brain-inspired computing” and “brain-computer intelligence.” The 2016 “Notification on National S&T Innovation Programs for the 13 th Five-Year Plan” mentioned AI but did not count it among its major projects. Whereas the earliest appearance of AI in a ministry notification was in July 2015, 7 China’s “National Medium- and Long-term S&T Development Plan” 8 issued in 2006 had already identified brain science and cognition among its top research priorities. These efforts to use neuroscience to inform AI, and vice-versa, date to at least 1999 6 and precede China’s focus on AI as a standalone discipline. 5 Although China still lags in semi-conductor design and basic AI research, it is moving to address -or circumvent-these problems, lending credence to its long-term aspirations.īuried in this plan, and absent entirely from the Western dialog on China AI, is what we see as that country’s most interesting and potentially significant research, namely, a top-down program to effect a “merger” ( 混合) of human and artificial intelligence. 3 The announcement piqued the interest of the world’s techno-literati 4 in light of the plan’s unabashed goal of world hegemony, its state backing, and a well-founded belief that China is already a major AI player. On JChina’s State Council released its “New Generation AI Development Plan” 2 to advance Chinese artificial intelligence in three stages, at the end of which, in 2030, China would lead the world in AI theory, technology, and applications. 1Ĭhina’s Plan to “Merge” Human and Artificial IntelligenceĪnalysts familiar with China’s technical development programs understand that in China things happen by plan, and that China is not reticent about announcing these plans. All claims are based on primary Chinese data. Recommendations to address our concerns are offered in conclusion. China’s advantages are discussed along with the implications of this brain-inspired research. The article begins with a review of the statutory basis for China’s AI-brain program, examines related scholarship, and analyzes the supporting science. deficiencies in tracking foreign technological threats. While not unique to China, the research warrants concern since it raises the bar on AI safety, leverages ongoing U.S. China is pursuing what its leaders call a “first-mover advantage” in artificial intelligence (AI), facilitated by a state-backed plan to achieve breakthroughs by modeling human cognition.
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