China could erode US AI dominance within 10-20 years, scholar warns

A new study, co-written by Li Cheng, who heads the Centre on Contemporary China and the World at the University of Hong Kong, indicates that in the next 10 to 20 years, China's energy and industrial capabilities might pose a challenge to the US's dominance in AI. Released on Wednesday, the research highlights that while the US currently leads in advanced chips and AI infrastructure, it faces several structural issues that could jeopardize its future. Meanwhile, China is rapidly advancing in energy and AI use, with the gap in AI models narrowing. The authors emphasize that China's focus on affordable, open-source models is propelling its AI growth, unlike the high-end, proprietary models favored by American firms.