Jeffrey Ding @jjding99 Twitter profile

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Jeffrey Ding

4 months

Excited to share that my book on technological revolutions and power transitions will be published in @PrincetonUPress in August. Available to preorder ($30 paperback): - -

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

2 years

Greetings from a world where…we are married 🥰

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

2 years

Some groovy personal news: I'll be joining George Washington University as an Assistant Professor of Political Science, starting in August 2022. Very grateful for support from communities at @Politics_Oxford @GovAI_ @StanfordCISAC @StanfordHAI , esp. Duncan Snidal and @AllanDafoe .

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Excited to share my Deciphering China's AI Dream report, a 6 month effort at analyzing how all the pieces fit in China's AI strategy. Very grateful to @Miles_Brundage @EBKania @DanitGal @FHIOxford GovAI Program + many others. Main takeaways below:

Deciphering China's AI Dream - Future of Humanity Institute

FHI is a multidisciplinary research institute at Oxford University studying big picture questions for human civilization.

www.fhi.ox.ac.uk

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

1 year

My first solo-authored publication is now available open access in @RIPEJournal ! *The diffusion deficit in scientific and technological power: re-assessing China’s rise* Thanks to everyone who gave feedback on & reviewed this piece. Key takeaways below:

The diffusion deficit in scientific and technological power: re-assessing China’s rise

Virtually all scholars recognize that scientific and technological capabilities are becoming increasingly important factors in a nation’s overall power. Unsurprisingly, debates over a possible U.S....

www.tandfonline.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

3 years

Excited to share my first journal article! *The Logic of Strategic Assets: From Oil to AI* (w/ @AllanDafoe ) Since Fall 2018, this project has gone through many rounds of helpful feedback (& rejections). Glad it's now available open access: Key takeaways:

The Logic of Strategic Assets: From Oil to AI

What resources and technologies are strategic? Policy and theoretical debates often focus on this question, since the “strategic” designation yields valuable resources and elevated attention. The a...

www.tandfonline.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

1 year

Pumped to share a new @GovAI_ report by me & @jennywxiao on recent trends in China's large language model landscape: . We study a sample of 26 large-scale pre-trained AI models developed by Chinese labs, marking the first in-depth analysis of this topic.

Recent Trends in China's Large Language Model Landscape | GovAI

As large-scale pre-trained AI models gain popularity in the West, many Chinese AI labs have developed their own models capable of generating coherent text and realistic images and videos. These...

www.governance.ai

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

1 year

Delighted to share my new article w/ @AllanDafoe , published open access in @EJIntSec *Engines of power: Electricity, AI, and general-purpose military transformations* @GWtweets @ElliottSchoolGW @GovAI_ @StanfordCISAC Key takeaways below:

Engines of power: Electricity, AI, and general-purpose, military transformations | European Journal...

Engines of power: Electricity, AI, and general-purpose, military transformations - Volume 8 Issue 3

www.cambridge.org

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Finally got my copy of a 500pg book published by Tencent and a govt think tank on AI policy and governance. What @AndrewYNg said about AI research may be equally true for AI policy. Chinese thinkers know a lot about Western scholarship but the converse doesn't hold.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

Very excited (and nervous) to join this cohort of @StanfordCISAC researchers as a predoctoral fellow with @StanfordHAI for the upcoming academic year!

CISAC names 2020-21 fellows and researchers

The Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) is pleased to welcome the fellows and researchers who will be joining us for the 2020-21 academic year. These scholars will spend the...

cisac.fsi.stanford.edu

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Tired: China had first AI plan ever + are going to rule the world Wired: Both the White House/Dept of Defense had already issued AI plans Inspired: DARPA's Strategic Computing Prog. (1983-1992) massively promoted AI. Stop viewing ChinAI in a vacuum w/o historical/intl context.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

2 months

New article in @ISQ_Jrnl : How do tech revolutions produce economic power transitions? I propose a causal path around general-purpose technologies, which demand different institutional shifts than standard focus on monopolizing innovation in key sectors.

The Rise and Fall of Technological Leadership: General-Purpose Technology Diffusion and Economic...

Abstract. How do technological revolutions affect the rise and fall of great powers? Scholars have long observed that major technological breakthroughs dis

academic.oup.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

3 months

Excited to be named an AI2050 early career fellow! Thanks to Schmidt Sciences for funding my work on AI governance and the role of int'l orgs in improving China's safety standards in other powerful technologies (e.g., aviation, nuclear power).

Second Cohort of AI2050 Early Career Fellows Named By Schmidt Sciences - Schmidt Sciences

www.schmidtsciences.org

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

. @NeurIPSConf 2020 has new req't for authors to write an impact statement on pot. societal effects of their ML research. What does that entail? See this guide from Carolyn Ashurst, @manderljung , @carinaprunkl , @janleike , @yaringal , @TShevlane & @AllanDafoe

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Thread that gives a glimpse into a Chinese MILLENNIAL's phone: asked friend who studies at Lanzhou Uni. (Gansu province) to share how she organizes her phone apps. Category #1 : Social -- Wechat/QQ (first 2) connect friends, Weibo (3) for sharing views, Zhihu (last) is Q&A forum

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

9 years

"The black experience in this country stands in direct opposition to what America tells the world about itself" @tanehisicoates #blackatiowa

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

We have 1000+ profiles of @elonmusk (did you hear about his baby's name?!) but somehow there is not a single English-language profile piece (> 8 paragraphs) on Morris Chang, the founder of TSMC. In this week's #ChinAI @JoyDantongMa and I rectify that gap:

ChinAI #98: Techlore - The Historical Rise of TSMC & Samsung in Semiconductors

Plus, the Trump admin's continued efforts to undermine US supply of AI talent

chinai.substack.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

I've finished a translation of a deeply troubling article on: China's securitization of Xinjiang, Leon Technology (立昂技术) as a key actor (scant coverage of them), and deeply troubling details on why face recognition/AI tech plays a key role...(thread)

Xinjiang's Tens-of-Billion-Scale Security Market, the Integration Giant Tells You How to Get Your...

Xinjiang's Tens-of-Billion-Scale Security Market, the Integration Giant Tells You How to Get Your Share *Note: These are Jeffrey Ding’s translations. Jeffrey Ding is a researcher at the Future of...

docs.google.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Sri led our @uisg efforts at @uiowa to reform the general education requirements on diversity and inclusion, she represents the best of what America can be - pass #HR392 to #SupportSriPonnada #HawksSoarTogether Learn more about her story here:

Support Sri Ponnada

Hi. My name is Sri Ponnada - and I’m a software engineer at Microsoft. At Microsoft I work on products that empower people around the world to maximize how they use technology and to accomplish...

www.facebook.com

Jack Chen (he/him)

@jakchen

6 years

I'm proud to call Sri a Microsoft colleague. Thank you @RepKevinYoder for taking the time to hear our employees stories, and for your commitment to eliminating #percountry limits. #HR392

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

8 months

Later today (2:30PM eastern), I'll be testifying at a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on AI and national security. Tune in here:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

3 months

I'm recruiting a 2-year postdoc to work on global gov. of emerging tech, w/ focus on China's int'l engagement. Based in GW's polisci dept & affiliated w/ Inst. of Security & Conflict Studies. Deadline is March 25. Please share the link to apply:

Postdoctoral Associate

The George Washington University Political Science Department is seeking an exceptional candidate for a full-time, academic research position at the rank of postdoctoral associate. The term of this...

www.gwu.jobs

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Finally getting around to reading the much-recommended book The Party by @mcgregorrichard on how the Chinese Communist Party actually rules. Will collect interesting points in this thread for those who want to follow along and for my own public accountability to finish this book

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

China's Top 100 AI companies (pre-IPO), ranked by estimated operating income in 2018, per Yiou Intelligence report: 1st tier: 1-2b RMB (Face++, Cambricon, etc.) 2nd tier: 500-800m (出门问问, Terminus, etc.) 3rd tier: 300-400m (Mininglamp, Linkdoc, etc.) < 200m RMB: ~70 others

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

The Chinese AI unicorn Megvii (旷视) has filed a 557-page IPO prospectus () on the HK exchange (in their words: "opening ourselves up to the world" [p. 3]). They are expected to raise $500m - $1b. Here's some key takeaways from my morning power-skim:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

If you appreciate this as much as I do, we can be friends

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Pastor's sermon this morning was all about how how advances in AI will challenge our notion of what makes human beings special, making our souls the core of our exceptionalism as a species. If you can't escape the AI buzz at church, where can anyone find safe refuge?

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

Imagine an article about America citing a random Twitter user as supporting evidence for a point ----> From this Economist article from 2019: "As one Weibo user put it after Chang’e-4’s landing, 'China has made history! Half of the Moon will be ours.'"

Can China become a scientific superpower?

The hypothesis that scientific greatness requires freedom of thought is about to be tested

www.economist.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Problem: If at least 50% of your news about China's tech scene isn't coming from reading Chinese media/think tanks/academics, then you're missing a lot of the story. Solution: subscribe to the #ChinAI newsletter. Latest issue on AI and privacy

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

My patented 2-step guide to reading China-related news. 1) read. 2) ask yourself: how would I think about this development's effect on people if I didn't view everything through the lens of US-China great power competition. There it is, that's the secret

ChinAI #93: Year 2 of ChinAI

Reflections on Technological Trajectories and the "China-watching" Community

chinai.substack.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

In pre-term email, Magdalen reassures students that the "college has had several serious challenges before in its great history and always comes through in the end. There were five major epidemics in the 1500s and we managed to adapt then as we are doing now." Weird flex but OK!

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

My dad is a leader in our Chinese evangelical church in Iowa City - he tells me that visiting scholars from China are now being warned by the Chinese govt not to go to church in the US. Anyone have any additional related info to this?

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Going to collect interesting examples of English-Chinese language asymmetry in understanding of global tech landscape in this thread, showcasing the diversity and depth of English coverage that orgs and individuals in China are translating into Chinese and commenting on

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Shenzhen is first to pilot facial recognition tech in verifying students for the gaokao test (China's college entrance exam). This stuff is moving fast folks #ChinAI

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

From my thesis research on China's soft power efforts in Africa. Red = countries in which the plurality of respondents chose China as the best model for development. Blue = U.S. as best model. Yellow = South Africa Green = former colonial power Source: @afrobarometer 2014/2015

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

One of the biggest problems in tech + politics analysis is the "technology abstraction problem," esp re: AI, now a catch-all term. This is also the case for "Chips" -we need to better specify the tech (eg this link divides China's "chips" into 60 subtypes)

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Huawei Noah's Ark Lab launches "AI poet": writing high quality classical Chinese poetry with a generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) -- "first to employ GPT in developing a poetry generation system" Stay tuned for more coverage in next week's #ChinAI

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Since these have drawn some interest lately, a short thread with my informal translation of "Chapter 25: 23 'Strong Regulations' for AI" in the Tencent 500 pg book on AI policy and strategy. Midway through the chapter the writers reference the Asilomar AI Principles

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

The US doesn't need a "National AI Strategy." It's a fluffy way for Trump admin to self-congratulate/pretend it's doing stuff while ignoring more important/difficult areas where gov. can play a role: revive the Office of Tech Assessment, invest in STEM edu., immigration reform

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

My latest piece w/ @pstAsiatech and @SammSacks is on China's efforts to set international standards for AI - thanks to @gwbstr and New America DigiChina for publishing the analysis + translation of China's White Paper on AI Standards key takeaways follow:

Chinese Interests Take a Big Seat at the AI Governance Table

www.newamerica.org

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

3 years

The year of baking deliciously

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

No we aren't. See my attempt to actually assess U.S. and China AI capabilities using a systematic framework that checks against the tech abstraction problem and cherry-picked statistics:

Adam Segal (@[email protected])

@adschina

5 years

‘We are being outspent. We are being outpaced’: Is America ceding the future of AI to China?

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Daily reminder that the ornithology of China-watchers is a diverse field. "China doves" can take"China hawkish" approaches, "China hawks" can push"China dovish" means, some are GMO-like hawk-dove hybrids, others are China egrets, personally I identify as a China Iowan goldfinch

Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

To be fair, this week's newsletter held @FT to a standard that 95% of other newsrooms can't meet either so maybe I have a naive Aaron Sorkin Newsroom type belief in what today's newsrooms should aspire to...

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Sneak peak of this week's #ChinAI feature translation which shatters the hype over China's Tencent as an AI and data giant/powerhouse --- a Tencent insider asks: has anyone noticed that Tencent hasn't had a CTO since 2014?

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

What you measure is what you get

Matthew Brennan

@mbrennanchina

5 years

Chinese phone cradle for boosting your phone's daily step count. Some insurance companies in China allow people who consistently reach a certain daily step count to get discounted health insurance premiums.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

I very much doubt that this camera is equipped with facial recognition capabilities. I get the fear and there's obviously the general risks of CCTV, but let's get the facts right.

Jordan Sather

@Jordan_Sather_

5 years

Protestors in Hong Kong are cutting down facial recognition towers.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

Yes. And it's because of the protests.

Anders Corr, Ph.D.

@anderscorr

4 years

"China is building 24 hours a day, America is protesting 24 hours a day. Do you think there is hope for America?" - Chinese national, 15 Nov 2020

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

In today's edition of "this stuff is moving fast folks" - here's @globeandmail story on Hangzhou No. 11 High School, which has equipped classrooms with cameras that track the facial expressions and emotions of students to make sure they're paying attention

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

Exhibit #567 of what I call the "AI abstraction problem." This magic buzzword has become so slippery that it is no longer analytically coherent nor useful. More here:

Louise Matsakis

@lmatsakis

4 years

The idea that TikTok's algorithm could be used to enhance China's weapons systems is one of the craziest justifications I've seen for targeting the company, and I've seem A LOT

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Here's a prelim. list of issues w/ Peter Thiel's Google hitpiece that somehow got published as NYT oped: 1) Getting basic facts wrong: China's constitution doesn't "mandate that all research done in China be shared with the PLA" h/t @lorandlaskai

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Thread: One of my goals is to question techno-nationalist assumptions and ideologies about #ChinAI . Let's take this concept of "China's AI talent" as something that a more techno-global view can help unpack. One simplified understanding (and one I share) is: China's AI talent...

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

First issue of the weekly ChinAI Newsletter is out! It includes links to the translations of the Tencent book and China's White Paper on AI standardization - make sure it doesn't get stuck in your promotions tab! Subscription link in my bio #ChinAI

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

3 years

This week's #ChinAI marks 3 straight weeks of contributor-driven issues: . Want to help make it four? This week I'm going to translate this recent special report on the abuses of facial recognition by "The Beijing Times" .

ChinAI #130: Cloudy with a Chance of Security

Justin Fang on Cloud Security in China

chinai.substack.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Just watched #TheFarewell w/ my fam, hard to explain its wonderful sorrowful beauty. 2 things I know are true: 1) the world will be a better place if more folks watch it 2) I can't wait to see all the future stories people w/ first names like Lulu & last names like Wang will tell

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

One quick and dirty method I use to check against hype and lack of technical nuance in my writing about AI + politics: Count up the number of times I use AI as an adjective and try to get it to zero

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Today's #ChinAI newsletter has best Chinese-lang. reporting on the Sensenet data leak (w/ glaring caveat that Xinjiang isn't mentioned), incl. what was leaked, where it came from, how it was leaked, Re-ID systems, & data sec issues w/ Chinese AI companies

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

8 months

GW is hiring for an Assistant Professor of Political Science, with a specialization in international security. Last week to turn in applications!

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Slept in way later than I should have, watched way too many NFL and MLB highlight/analysis videos on YouTube's endless loop instead of working, dropped and pushed back some projects today. Made a tiny bit of progress on research. Give yourself a little grace!

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

"Trump noted of an unnamed country that the attendee said was clearly China, 'almost every student that comes over to this country is a spy.' -- Our President's sad, flawed, and dangerous view on the 350k+ Chinese intl students in the U.S.

Trump rants behind closed doors with CEOs

The president rails against China over dinner with execs and senior White House staff.

www.politico.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Congrats to @kaifulee and his collaborator @mattsheehan88 on the launch of their AI Superpowers book today - a must-read for understanding the role of AI in the U.S.-China relationship. Order on Amazon here:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Was great to work together again with @JoyDantongMa on this week's #ChinAI which translates and unpacks a report on the global AI industry by CAICT, a major Chinese govt think tank:

ChinAI #62: Global AI Industry Stats - the View from China

Plus, a very meaty ChinAI (Four to Forward) Section this week

chinai.substack.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Somehow 100+ people in this world pay to read the #ChinAI newsletter. These folks subscribe w/ no expectation of exclusive content (each #ChinAI issue is open to all). Their support goes toward a cast of contributors & my gummy worm addiction. Join them:

ChinAI Newsletter | Jeffrey Ding | Substack

Jeff Ding's weekly translations of writings from Chinese thinkers on China's AI landscape. Click to read ChinAI Newsletter, by Jeffrey Ding, a Substack publication with tens of thousands of subscri...

chinai.substack.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Big ups to @KelseyTuoc for this balanced, well-researched (25 hyperlinks to sources!) piece that deconstructs Peter Thiel's oped in the NYT last week -- quotes my arguments defending Google/Microsoft overseas labs against claims of "anti-Americanism":

Why an AI arms race with China would be bad for humanity

Peter Thiel argues AI is a “military technology” we need to keep from China. Here’s what that mindset misses.

www.vox.com

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@jjding99

5 years

Couple semi-formed takes on this: 1) the overhyping of a rising Asian country's AI abilities isnt new - falls into narrative that goes back to 1976; 2) as was case w/ Japan, China's ability to catch up in AI will have less to do w/ AI spec. policies + more w/ macroecon factors

Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Kindleberger back in 1976!!describes reports warning of an Asian country rapidly catching up to US lead in artificial intelligence. Sound familiar to anyone?

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Microsoft (collaborative effort between Beijing and Redmond lab) achieves human parity on automatic Chinese to English news translation - advances in machine translation lately have been incredible #ChinAI

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Still, it's a nice way to overview the Chinese app ecosystem. One thing that's striking is the lack of any apps (at least from what I see) from non-Chinese companies, perhaps an indication of the growing bifurcation of app/tech ecosystems. What does everyone else think?

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

1 year

Since its publication last month, my article on China's diffusion deficit in scientific and technological power has become the 3rd most-read article published by @RIPEJournal in the last year. I appreciate everyone who's *diffusing* these ideas!

Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

1 year

My first solo-authored publication is now available open access in @RIPEJournal ! *The diffusion deficit in scientific and technological power: re-assessing China’s rise* Thanks to everyone who gave feedback on & reviewed this piece. Key takeaways below:

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@jjding99

6 years

This sounds like a very smart approach that avoids traps of mimicking China's industrial policy - focus on early stage R&D + standards dev, but missing probably most important aspect: making sure we retain and welcome talent from around world through immigration reform

Paul Scharre

@paul_scharre

6 years

Important new report from Congress on artificial intelligence

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

The Xilinx purchase of DeePhi is great example of why the "US + China + competition in X related to AI = simplistic clickbait story about US-China arms race" formula misses so so much. It's a story involving nations besides just the US/China, strategic alliances, tech standards..

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Americans underestimate the degree of divergence b/t European approaches toward China and the current US mindset. Not everyone thinks we're in a "tech Cold War," and even at the height of real Cold War there were significant disagreements over tech exports to Soviets (see: COCOM)

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Here's the full text of Xi Jinping's congratulatory letter to the 2018 World AI Conference which took place today in Shanghai. Seems like "人工智能赋能新时代" (A new era of AI-Enablement/Empowerment) is the buzzword of the day #ChinAI

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

What's especially sad about this -- if it's true some visiting scholars are being warned to not go to churches abroad -- is that churches are often the most welcoming places for these scholars, where they find a home, where they make lasting friendships

Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

My dad is a leader in our Chinese evangelical church in Iowa City - he tells me that visiting scholars from China are now being warned by the Chinese govt not to go to church in the US. Anyone have any additional related info to this?

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

If you are researching China's tech scene and you can't name a favorite journalist who writes in Chinese, then you are seriously doing it wrong. I'm awed by talent of 四月(Internet name) of 机器之心(Synced is English portal). Here's 四月latest on Megvii:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Hey @AndrewYang and #YangGang : new research from @baobaofzhang shows workers underestimate the impact of automation on their job security, misdirecting blame to immigrants and outsourcing/driving support for right-wing populism.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

1 year

Last month, I testified on this paper to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. See below C-SPAN video w/ good debates b/t commissioners and me as well as starred timestamps on my points. I'm grateful to the @USCC_GOV for the invitation.

Hearing on U.S.-China Competitiveness and Innovation

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission held a hearing on Capitol Hill to examine the role of Chinese higher education in supporting the nation's ability to innovate. George W…

www.c-span.org

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

No disrespect to English-language coverage of China's AI scene, but this week's #ChinAI piece was the best I've read at unpacking the buzzword of "smart manufacturing." As always, this is a living doc & folks are already adding comments and corrections:

We Always Shout about Chasing Germany and Switzerland in Manufacturing, but We Can’t Delude...

docs.google.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

1 year

Our piece is one of the most-read articles on the Foreign Affairs site right now: If you run into a paywall, shoot me a message and I'll share a pdf

The Illusion of China’s AI Prowess

Regulating AI will not set America back in the technology race.

www.foreignaffairs.com

Helen Toner

@hlntnr

1 year

New piece from @jennywxiao , @jjding99 and me pushing back on the claim that we can't regulate AI because that would just let China pull ahead. This is not a good argument! 4 reasons why, though first a caveat: 🧵

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

UK report on use of AI in public service delivery yesterday - even those working closely w/ UK gov on AI policy, including the Turing Institute & Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation, expressed frustration at lack of transparency esp re: surveillance tech

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

There are two types of people in the world. People who don't believe in miracles and people who know that Avatar: The Last Airbender aired for three seasons on Nickelodeon.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

About a year and a half ago we at @FHIOxford had the chance to hear @mattsheehan88 give a sneak peak of some of the ideas on this book in lunch seminar. Excited that the office version of the book has arrived and can't wait to dig in!

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

I think Robinson's The Ministry for the Future is the best sci fi/politics/nature/economics/philosophy book I've read all year

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

The @cognition_x team is hosting "The Festival of All Things AI" in London this June 11-12 where I'll be talking about #ChinAI . If you’d like to attend, use my code for a free expo pass. Code: cx18jeffding3xp0 #CogX18 Register here:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Who among us has not deeply ached to read a 10,000 word data-packed thinkpiece that lays out a pathway for China to upgrade its chip industry? A Chinese chip industry insider emphasizes the role of AI and more in this week's #ChinAI feature translation:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Mexico's Ambassador to China sharing my AI Potential Index #AIPI #ChinAI

Jorge Guajardo

@jorge_guajardo

6 years

This table explains how, of the four key components for developing AI, China only has a lead in one (data), and lags far behind the US in the other three.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

We severely underestimate the influence of scifi books and TV in shaping the frames of reference and overall milieu surrounding strategic tech like AI. Read 100 articles about China's AI policy or Read the Three Body Problem by Liu Cixin (China's preeminent scifi writer)

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

If you listen to the first #ChinAI podcast with @r_zwetsloot and give me sharp feedback, I solemnly swear that by the next episode I will: 1) stop saying "shoutout" so much, 2) stop saying "dive deep" so much, 3) come up with an intro and outro jingle

ChinAI Pod #1: AI Talent Policy with Remco Zwetsloot

Welcome to the first episode of the ChinAI podcast, hosted by Jeff Ding. There’s a lot of great podcasts out there that get interesting people to talk about their latest work on either the surface or...

chinai.substack.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

We're hiring! Check out the Project Manager role for the Governance of AI Program

Future of Humanity Institute

@FHIOxford

6 years

FHI is seeking 2 project managers to advance our mission. We are looking for pro-active and driven people who are keen to advance FHI's mission to ensure a long flourishing future. To know more and apply for these positions, visit:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Every article in the recent issue of《腾云》Tengyun magazine (Tencent's culture and tech magazine) is about data protection. Cover article headline: "'China needs its own data protection scheme."

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

Wow, @andybkennedy 's book on globalization of innovation b/t US + India/China is one of the best things I've read all year. Rigorous process tracing of how key domestic interest groups shape openness to innovation. Most impressive thing? Only 169 pgs of text (+100pgs of sources)

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

11 months

Congrats to all the #Caltech2023 grads this weekend, especially my little sister Rachel Ding! We’re so proud!

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Pretty sick data visualizations of Chinese overseas acquisitions, updated weekly:

China Deal Watch

This graphic, updated weekly, takes a close look at what China is acquiring, and where.

www.bloomberg.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Glad people are circling back to this long 10,000 word #ChinAI translation of one expert's take on a grand strategy for China's chip industry. Definitely worth a read when you have a free half hour.

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

Looking forward to talking with @SammSacks and @tsu_jing tomorrow about AI and the "China Challenge." See: Part of the @NCUSCR China Town Hall event which is bringing the conversation about US-China relations to 80+ local communities across the states

14th Annual CHINA TOWN HALL - China and the Transformations of AI: A

This event is presented in partnership with the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations to provide a more nuanced understanding of the implications of China’s rise for U.S.-China relations and for...

macmillan.yale.edu

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

5 years

The more I read tech policy scholarship the more I find myself aligning with Grubler 1988, p. 6: "The author is personally skeptical about technology 'planning,' forecasting, and selection by central authority."

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

Me: I still believe that academia can remain in touch with the real world! The real world:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

This is a long shot but I believe in the power of crowds: Has anyone come across Chinese-language sites for Chinese immigrants/expats (e.g. wenxuecheng) that present views that aren't plagued with anti-blackness? Trying to reach parents in ways other than shouting matches

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

3 years

Looking forward to presenting a summary of my dissertation on tech revolutions and power transitions at tomorrow's CISAC seminar. Glad to be joined by @JoshAGoldstein who will present on interstate influence operations. Link to register below:

CISAC

@StanfordCISAC

3 years

JOIN US: Wed. June 2 at 11:30 AM Pacific Time, seminar with CISAC fellows Jeff Ding and Josh Goldstein on “Technology and International Security: From Interstate Influence Operations to Technological Revolutions and the Rise and Fall of Great Powers.”

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

4 years

Rarely plug #ChinAI issues here now but especially proud of this issue. Feature translation on Douyu's (China's Twitch) open source microservices framework & reflections on how a similar microservices approach could improve coverage of US-China relations:

ChinAI 106: Douyu Open Sources Jupiter — a Microservices Architecture

Plus, US-China relations and "the security of many stories"

chinai.substack.com

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

If I could go back and rewrite the China AI Dream report, I would place much less emphasis on the Chinese govt and much more on Chinese companies, important labs/researchers, and the public as key actors, this week's #ChinAI newsletter sheds light on this:

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

This week's #ChinAI newsletter focused on the prospects of China militarizing AI technologies - one that will be informed by the broader effort of civil-military fusion and questions of AI ethics esp. regarding autonomous weapons: Subscription link in bio!

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Jeffrey Ding

@jjding99

6 years

Google recently launched a drawing game (Cai Hua Xiao Ge 猜画小歌) as a mini WeChat app, which has gone viral in China - users draw an object Google's neural network attempts to recognize, per this week's @GGVCapital newsletter --another step in Google's return to China? #ChinAI

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