'We need to win' AI race against Beijing, House China Committee member warns

 A House GOP lawmaker on the China Select Committee has warned that it is vital for the US to beat China in the "race" for dominance in the artificial intelligence sector.

"China is pursuing AI, but they're also pursuing quantum computing, and that's a deadly combination," Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., told Fox News Digital. “And in terms of artificial intelligence, the more data they collect, the faster they will advance…AI is a race we need to win.”

Jimenez pointed out that AI technology is increasingly being integrated into more aspects of both everyday life and the national security sector.

"We have to win the AI race because AI is used in everything including military hardware. So it is important for us to win that race, otherwise that technology will be used against us in the future," he said.

Asked about his concerns about China coming forward, Jimenez said, "Many of their weapons will be superior to our weapons and that worries me a lot."

What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

Just last year, the Pentagon unveiled an ambitious new AI program called the Replicator Initiative, which aims to produce thousands of drones with autonomous capabilities to compete with China.

Pentagon Deputy Secretary Kathleen Hicks said in August, "The replicator is to help us overcome the PRC's biggest advantage, which is scale. More ships, more missiles, more people." “To stay ahead, we are going to build a new wave of cutting-edge technology – as the US has done before – leveraging responsive, autonomous systems across all domains – that are less expensive, with fewer people in the line of fire. ", and can be changed, updated or improved with significantly shorter lead times."

However, Jimenez pointed out that in addition to the military implications, the AI race between the US and China is also playing out on a more granular level, aided by Beijing's ability to collect data on Americans through TikTok.

Placeholder He pressed FBI Director Christopher Wray on the issue at a hearing last month, during which Wray acknowledged that he had "very significant security concerns about TikTok."

Israel creates AI platform to monitor humanitarian situation in Gaza

“It's a combination of the ability that the Chinese government would have, if they chose to use it, to control the collection of data, to control the recommendation algorithms, and to be able to control and compromise devices if they wanted to.” "Would have happened," Ray said. “And if you layer AI, as you're saying, on top of all of this, it increases those concerns, because the ability to use American personal data and feed it into their AI engines, that creates problems. “Increases.”

Jimenez told Fox News Digital that the way to ease concerns about China and stay on top of AI innovation is to take a closer look at U.S. institutions that have ties to Beijing.

“I think we should look at educational institutions that have close relationships with Chinese companies, Chinese nationals who may work for the PRC. Look, if you're a Chinese company, you're bound by their law to Whatever research you do and the findings you have [that] can be useful to [the Chinese military],” he said.

“And so we need to look at every single Chinese company as basically an extension of the Chinese military. That's extremely worrying to me, and the fact that American universities and Western universities ... can transfer technology. "