From roads and buildings to green energy that helps countries keep up with global environmental regulations, Beijing’s investment has created significant development opportunities. But it has also provided a safety net for authoritarian governments seeking to consolidate power while limiting the economic consequences of Western sanctions. Traditional spheres of authoritarian cooperation, including financial dependence, military coordination, and political alignment, now look set to be joined by another: artificial intelligence (AI).
At the World AI Conference in Shanghai earlier this year, President Xi Jinping warned of “new historical injustices” arising from unequal access to artificial intelligence, signalling Beijing’s ambition to shape the future governance of the technology.