Home | Newsletters & Shorts | DW Weekly #168 – 12 July 2024

DW Weekly #168 – 12 July 2024

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Dear readers, 

Welcome to another issue of the Digital Watch weekly! 

We will spotlight another round of the China vs the USA tech competition. Last week, WIPO published a report on the landscape of patents in generative AI or GenAI (think AI that can generate images, videos, text, music, code, etc.) One of the main takeaways from this report, which has been all over the headlines, is that China has a substantial lead in AI patents, with six times more GenAI inventions than the second country on the list, the USA. The Republic of Korea, Japan, and India round up the top five.

Titled 'Number of GenAI patent applications, a stepped award stage shows flags representing the 5 top contenders: (1) China, (2) the USA, (3) South Korea, (4) Japan, and (5) India

This week, a survey of business decision-makers has shown that 83% of Chinese organisations are using GenAI

Does all this recent data show that China is winning the AI race? Not quite. While the country is ahead in some areas, the USA is a strong contender. The USA produced more notable machine-learning models in 2023 (61 compared to China’s 15), leads in AI foundation models, variational autoencoders (VAEs), and private AI investments. Plus, we should remember that the number of patents doesn’t correlate to their quality or impact – the mere registration of patents doesn’t automatically translate into apps or services being put on the market. 

(Sidebar: foundation models are machine learning models trained on broad and diverse data and which can be adapted to a wide range of tasks across different domains; they serve as a base for more specialised models dedicated to specific tasks or areas. A variational autoencoder (VAE) is a generative AI algorithm that uses deep learning to generate new content based on the structure of the input data.) 

The USA nudges ahead with 24% of organisations fully implementing GenAI compared to 19% in China. In addition, since 2018, the USA has been embroiled in a chip war with China, blacklisting Chinese chipmakers and tightening controls on the export of its most advanced chip-related technologies. This is particularly important because there are almost no semiconductors without some kind of US-trademarked bits in their design or production processes, making things tricky for Chinese chipmakers and industries reliant on such technology, including AI, in the meantime.

Stepping away from the US-China competition, it’s important to acknowledge that there are other actors out there to watch. One is India, which had the highest growth rates in GenAI patent family publications (56% per year). 

Interestingly, another survey shows that most (polled) Americans view winning the AI race against China as secondary to a cautious approach to AI development to prevent its misuse by adversaries. Only 23% believe the USA should rapidly build powerful AI to outpace China and gain a decisive advantage.

While the USA and China are grappling with each other, and others are rushing to catch up, the contender closest to the crown right now is AI itself.

The discussions at the 8th substantive session of the Open-ended Working Group (OEWG) on security of and in the use of information and communications technologies 2021–2025 are still ongoing, today being the last day. AI reports and transcripts are available on our dedicated web page, with a human-generated analysis planned for next week.

Andrijana and the Digital Watch team


Highlights from the week of 5-12 July 2024

building 1011876 1280

The decision comes amid regulatory scrutiny from antitrust watchdogs in Europe, the UK, and the US concerning Microsoft’s potential influence over OpenAI.

the white house

President Joe Biden has formed a team of experts to create standards for AI training and deployment across industries.

serbia ai supercomputer

The new AI Development Strategy 2024-2030 builds on this solid foundation, aiming to nurture a vibrant AI ecosystem in Serbia.

eu cybersecurity standards

The European Commission’s AI Act will classify AI-based cybersecurity and emergency services in connected devices as high-risk, requiring extensive testing and security measures, significantly impacting various sectors like medical devices…

OpenAi

OpenAI announced it would block Chinese users from accessing its services on 9 July, amid rising US-China tensions, affecting developers who relied on OpenAI tools.

electronics 4972649 1280

The semiconductor industry, now leading the S&P 500, is experiencing explosive demand driven by AI advancements.

japanese and us flags semiconductor consortium

Based in Silicon Valley, the consortium will focus on developing advanced back-end technologies for semiconductor packaging, aiming to be fully operational next year.

eu and china flags

The initiative comes amid rising EU-China tensions, exemplified by tariffs of up to 37.6% on Chinese electric vehicles.

woman using laptop wood desk with cyberattack warning screen cyber security concept

US authorities have disrupted a sophisticated Russian disinformation campaign, Meliorator, which uses AI to create fake social media personas and spread false information in the US and internationally.

hacker working in the darkness

China’s embassy in Australia dismissed the allegations as ‘political manoeuvring’.

nato flag north atlantic treaty organization flag waving

The move, unveiled during the 2024 NATO Summit in Washington, DC, marks NATO’s 75th anniversary and addresses the increasing cyber threats, especially following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

print at home concert tickets

Hackers leaked nearly 39,000 print-at-home tickets for major events in an extortion scheme against Ticketmaster.

new zealand

The shift aims to ensure long-term success and maintain a multistakeholder approach involving governments, tech companies, and civil society.

taiwan flag is depicted on the screen with the program code

Despite this slowdown, the bank plans to conduct public hearings next year to inform the public about digital currency.

amazon logo

Amazon is under pressure from the European Commission to enhance transparency and ensure compliance with new regulations to tackle illegal and harmful content online.

flag of sri lanka

The legislative change introduces three new types of licences for satellite internet service providers, one of which allows Starlink to apply as a licensed service provider pending regulatory approval.



ICYMI

The Detroit Police Department has agreed to new rules limiting how it can use facial recognition technology, prompted by a lawsuit over a wrongful arrest in 2020. The EU and France flex their antitrust powers against Microsoft, Apple and Nvidia. Watch for details!


Upcoming

8N6ikeWA un flag blue

The UN OEWG 2021–2025 8th substantive session will focus on adopting the group’s annual progress report (APR), taking stock of the group’s discussions over the previous year and charting the way forward for the group. The GIP follows the event; just-in-time reports and transcripts are available on our dedicated web page.

440 360 max July newsletter banner

In the July issue of our monthly newsletter, we look at how the UN can navigate the tightrope between innovation and impartiality when integrating AI in its operations, explore how AI chatbots master language using principles rooted in the linguistic theories of Ferdinand de Saussure, look at recent governments’ actions on digital antitrust oversight, and explain how social media giants won in a free speech showdown at the US Supreme Court.