The billionaire philanthropist George Soros has used his annual speech at the World Economic Forum, in Davos, to launch a scathing attack on China and its president Xi Jinping. Mr Soros warned that artificial intelligence and machine learning could be used to entrench totalitarian control in the country.
He said this scenario presented an "unprecedented danger". But he said the Chinese people were his "main source of hope". "China is not the only authoritarian regime in the world but it is the wealthiest, strongest and technologically most advanced," he said, noting concerns too about Vladimir Putin's Russia."This makes Xi Jinping the most dangerous opponent of open societies," he said. Mr Soros, a prominent donor to the Democratic Party in the US, also criticised the Trump administration's stance towards China. "Instead of waging a trade war with practically the whole world, the US should focus on China," he said.
He said this scenario presented an "unprecedented danger". But he said the Chinese people were his "main source of hope". "China is not the only authoritarian regime in the world but it is the wealthiest, strongest and technologically most advanced," he said, noting concerns too about Vladimir Putin's Russia."This makes Xi Jinping the most dangerous opponent of open societies," he said. Mr Soros, a prominent donor to the Democratic Party in the US, also criticised the Trump administration's stance towards China. "Instead of waging a trade war with practically the whole world, the US should focus on China," he said.
