The EU’s “Softball” Approach to Artificial Intelligence Will Lose to China’s “Hardball”

While China is developing a sophisticated national artificial intelligence (AI) strategy and allocating massive government funding to capture global market share in AI, Europe is simply going through the motions. Instead, the EU has made values and ethics in AI its top priority. Ironically, even if the EU’s first priority is to shape AI ethics, it will be severely limited in its ability to do so if it is not leading the development and adoption of this technology. As Eline Chivot and Daniel Castro write for Euronews, Europe will not win the AI race by philosophizing on the sidelines. Rather, it needs to play hardball and focus on putting in place the investment, skills, data, and regulations needed to outcompete China.