China's AI plan is consistent with history of censorship and surveillance

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The big story

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Kiran Ridley/Stringer/Getty, Jonnysek/Getty, Tyler Le/BI

We've heard about the dangers of wildcat AI, but what kinds of risks come from highly regulated and controlled technology?

For the Chinese Communist Party, this is the plan. The country's history of censorship and surveillance expands its approach to AIwrites Linette Lopez of Business Insider.

The CCP's AI plan is to shape reality and strengthen its power, according to internal documents. To this end, the government has final approval of the large language models and the data on which they were trained.

In short, it's less about “acting fast and breaking things” and more about “proceeding in a government-approved way and avoiding upsetting the status quo.”

China's efforts to exert control over AI come at a critical time for the country.

As Linette has previously reported, China's bright economic future has diminished considerably. And its recovery plan Chinese shock 2.0 will not come easily and will not be well received by the rest of the world.

As AI chatbots become the new method of receiving information, it is no wonder that the CCP is ensuring that AI accurate It is messages through.

However, this is not a call for a libertarian approach to generative AI.

As we have seen recently, the absence of safeguards brings its share of problems. The end results range from funny (don't make your pizza with glue) to infuriating (AI abuses creative work).

And faced with these mishaps, the response of those responsible rarely exudes the confidence of someone who is completely in control. Instead, we all feel like we're jumping into an AI-led journey and hoping for the best.

So imposing some types of rules around technology, even if not to the extent that the CCP has done, seems like a good idea.

But this poses another problem. How can we expect legislators, who often struggle with the basics of technologyto grasp something that people on the cutting edge can barely understand?

In the meantime, China could expand the AI ​​control and surveillance tools it creates to other regimes with similar ideologies.

This is a painful result.

“The digital curtain that AI can construct in our imagination will be far more impenetrable than iron, making it impossible for societies to cooperate in a common future,” writes Linette.

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3 things about the markets

Getty Images; Shutterstock; BI

1. Here are the interns. Ken Griffin's Citadel and Citadel Securities welcome more than 300 interns for their 11-week program starting today. BI looked at how companies recruit and manage a program that attracts more than 85,000 applicants and has an acceptance rate of 0.5%.
2. What to do before the May jobs report. Permabull Tom Lee said it's a great time to buy stocks, which is shocking with a new jobs report due on Friday. Stocks Slightly Down Last Week and April Core PCE Data Showing Slowing Inflation investors can jump in before the next rally.
3. GameStop is surging again. The retailer's shares nearly doubled ahead of Monday's open after trader Keith Gill, also known as “Roaring Kitty,” revealed a $116 million position.

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3 things in technology

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1. New layoffs hit Google, this time in its Cloud unit. The company announced he cut jobs in several Cloud teams, according to an internal document reviewed by BI. The layoffs appear more radical than Google's more surgical cuts to other teams in recent months.
2. This anti-Instagram photo-sharing app is grabbing the attention of the tech world. Launched in 2023 by two former Instagram employees, Retro is a social media app that doesn't chase the AI ​​hype. Instead, it focuses on building a comfortable and small-scale user experience this is courting many Silicon Valley figures.
3. It's been a rough start for Amazon's Shopify killer. Launched over a year ago, Buy with Prime has seen mixed results so far, according to sellers who spoke with BI. Internal Amazon emails discussed “dissatisfaction,” with sales “far off target.”

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3 things in business

American Express; Apple; Alyssa Powell/BI

1. Meet Gen Z's new status symbol: an AmEx card. American Express credit cards aren't just for your rich, baby boomer dad anymore. AmEx's new benefits are targeting Generation Z and millennial customers by offering Uber rewards and special access to events like Coachella. So far, it's working.
2. Why Americans Don't Exercise. Many of our collective crises—depression, loneliness, and anxiety—are made worse by our tendency toward a sedentary, cooped-up lifestyle. Research shows that exercise can help. SO why have we given up trying to be active?
3. Baby boomers and Gen Z feel happy and lonely. New studies show that happiness and loneliness peak early and late in life, with a decline in middle age. We spoke with adults who feel both happy and lonely and with researchers about how it works.

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In other news

What's happening today

• IATA's annual report on the airline industry will be released today.

The Insider Today team: Dan DeFrancesco, associate editor and presenter, in New York. Jordan Parker Erb, editor, in New York. Hallam Bullock, editor, London. George Glover, journalist, in London. Grace Lett, associate editor, in Chicago. Annie Smith, associate producer, in London.