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Shen Yi
The United States, which has been continuously in a state of hysteria due to its inability to effectively solve internal problems, has now set its sights on “artificial intelligence”.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the Biden administration is grappling with how to identify AI that poses a threat to the US national security, as the US moves to curb investment in advanced technology companies in China.
The US believes it needs to be concerned about China’s use of AI to enhance its military power.
The US is again focusing on AI as a threat to US national security.
There are reports suggesting that the Biden administration may categorise “artificial intelligence” as a separate technology category and attempt to restrict it through traditional tools such as sanctions and technology export controls.
This is another characteristic of the current US government—ignorant and anxious to showcase its so-called abilities.
As pointed out by Martin Chorzempa, who studies capital and technology controls at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, “AI is in many ways a meaningless category.
“It encompasses everything from Netflix recommendation algorithms to autonomous weapon systems and a bunch of stuff in between. It is extremely hard to define.”
The evolution of the US may appear unexpected, but it is also predictable.
According to research on hegemonic decline in Western international relations theory, the greatest security risk faced by an international system dominated by a hegemony is that the authority, after recognising its inevitable decline, becomes sensitive and fragile.
On one hand, a declining hegemony will be more determined to consolidate itself as an authority compared to when it was in its prime, thus establishing security standards with typical characteristics of “absolute security.”
They are particularly intolerant of new leaps in unfamiliar technological fields.
This leap does not truly threaten the hegemony status, but rather creates a psychologically suboptimal health status that makes it unable to tolerate any potential uncertainty. Mechanistically, this will accelerate the overall hysteria at the decision-making level of the authority.
On the other hand, the true root of the decline of a hegemony lies in its inherent mechanisms and the hegemonic order it has constructed.
In the case of the US, the building of global financial hegemony, which has steadily been in the general decline, as well as their hollowing out of the hegemonic powers and their key partners in the manufacturing sector, is the fundamental cause of the hegemonic stagnation.
However, this is the real “grey rhino” that the decision-making level of the hegemony is well aware of but dares not touch. Therefore, the hegemony will naturally seek alternative issues and targets to shift domestic contradictions outward, as well as repackaging real issues.
The process of repackaging is similar to Don Quixote charging at windmills: first, describing and defining windmills as “giants.” Even if they appear to be windmills, they are disguised as giants.
The US government’s definition of the security threat posed by artificial intelligence largely resembles a scene from Don Quixote’s charge against the windmill giant in the information technology era.
Such a US poses a significant threat to the world and is a major obstacle to the development of AI technology and industry.
The so-called threat refers to the current US, which appears to be aggressive on the surface, but in fact, faces a continuous loss of confidence and lack of faith in winning competitions through normal means. Instead, they rely on “eliminating all opponents” and not allowing others to compete.
In terms of its manifestations, it seems that the US is “only” targeting China, but in reality, the US is targeting any country that may surpass it.
In other words, all the methods used by the US to suppress China today can be used against any country or region in the world tomorrow.
Similarly, all the tactics used by the US to secure and even demonise AI today can be applied to any field or technological innovation globally tomorrow.
This is a common threat to achieving sustainable development and building a community with a shared future for mankind because a hegemonic country has explicitly declared that the world must follow its lead.
If it cannot lead, then the world cannot move forward.
The so-called obstacle refers to the current contradiction between US strategy and the inherent needs of AI development.
It is in fact a product of the over-the-top theoretical research in the 1950s and 1960s, the tremendous development of information technology in engineering applications from the 70s to the present day, and the unprecedented leap in global integration of market mechanisms after the end of the Cold War.
Various entities, especially countries, engage in fierce and orderly competition based on their comparative advantages, continuously transforming innovation into application on a global scale.
This is the underlying law for the progress of AI and most scientific and technological research and development for humanity.
What the current US government is doing, whether intentional or not, is essentially challenging and distorting this law and obstructing this historical process in order to maintain its hegemonic advantage.
Setting aside the fact that no truly sovereign country would accept such unreasonable demands, purely in terms of technological development, the actions of the US government are a classic example of a monopoly giant trying to use its monopoly advantage to maintain its monopoly position and obstruct technological innovation.
Such behaviour is denied as a wrong move by the laws within Europe and the US because it stifles economic growth.
Engaging in actions that are known to be wrong and even more harmful to oneself, akin to “drinking poison to quench your thirst,” not only reflects the anxiety, challenges, and impacts that the US faces in the face of hegemonic decline but also presents new questions to the global community on how to effectively respond.
How can we avoid letting a hysterical decline in hegemony ruin global sustainable development in the era of AI?
How can we ensure that AI is wielded by actors who are more responsible for global peace, security, and development?
It requires all parties to take truly responsible actions and work together for the benefit of all people around the world, including the American people, to enjoy the benefits brought by AI.— Global Times
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