China : The uses of artificial intelligence in international relations

Considering the exploits of artificial intelligence, it appears China is about to take a giant step as regards harnessing the benefits of the technology

China's ministry of foreign affairs is said to be trialling several prototype AI systems to assess risks to overseas investment projects, such as coups or terrorism. Should this project go ahead and succeeds, it would make nonsense of the theory that computers cannot take over very high-level jobs that humans have always performed.

It was reported that a system, created by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, searches for patterns in a vast amount of data, ranging from diplomatic cocktail-party chatter to satellite images, to offer insight into potential strategies.




Without the shadow of a doubt, this move by China highlights the role AI promises to play in great power rivalry. Commenting on AI last year, President Putin noted: “Whoever becomes the leader in this sphere will rule the world.”

Already, it is feared that unlike China, the United States does not have a structured national strategy for how to approach artificial intelligence.