Nishan Dialogue: AI could help humanity leap forward

The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) will bring about profound changes.

“The wide application of AI will accelerate industrial integration and innovation, and promote the high-quality development of China’s industries,” Wang Peng, a researcher at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, wrote in an opinion piece on the Chinese website of China Daily. “AI could help humanity leap forward,” he added.

Wang’s opinion echoes the themes of the World Internet Conference Nishan Dialogue on Digital Civilization, to be held in late June in Nishan, Qufu, East China’s Shandong province. Nishan is an important cultural and historical site in China and the birthplace of the Chinese educator and philosopher Confucius.

Wang highlighted AI’s great potential. As a fundamental technology in the digital era, AI will play a big role in restructuring resources and reshaping the economic structure, he wrote. 

AI is able to facilitate transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, achieving high-quality development with greater efficiency. It can also stimulate demand-side structural reform, injecting new vitality into the high-quality development of the economy, he added.

Wang suggested that as China’s economy transitions from rapid growth to high-quality development, it is necessary to cultivate new drivers. New technologies, such as AI, the Internet of Things, virtual reality, robots and 5G, create more opportunities for disruptive innovations, he wrote.

Wang also cautioned that AI’s extensive applications could lead to information security risks, citing new regulatory efforts in the US, Europe and China as preemptive measures.

In the closing section of his piece, Wang contemplated the new opportunities presented by the integration of AI technology and Chinese culture. “The Nishan Dialogue is expected to contribute Chinese wisdom and methods to promoting the communication, mutual learning and inclusiveness of human civilizations in the AI era, and building a community with a shared future in cyberspace,” he wrote.

The full text of Wang’s opinion piece can be accessed on the Chinese website of China Daily