Brad Smith, President of Microsoft, had a sit-down with China's Minister of Commerce, Wang Wentao, to talk over matters such as trade links between Washington and Beijing, as well as artificial intelligence. This conference demonstrates China's attempt to depict itself as being accommodating to American businesses in spite of interminable tensions between China and the United States, and to boost its economy at the same time. The Ministry of Commerce conveyed its hope that Microsoft will act as a “constructive role” in collaborating in regards to AI between the two countries.
On Wednesday, Brad Smith, the President of Microsoft, held a meeting with China's Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao to talk about issues such as artificial intelligence and the trade between Washington and Beijing, according to a Youdao-translated Chinese government announcement.This seemingly shows China's intent to stay friendly to American firms despite the ongoing US-China tensions, as it looks to improve the economy.The meeting between Smith and Wang comes after the discussion between Joe Biden and President Xi Jinping last month. This indicates that China and the U.S. are seeking to collaborate in some significant areas, as well as show they want to make conditions more favourable for overseas businesses.
At the meeting, Wang declared that China is devoted to delivering better facilities to overseas companies, in accordance with a communique from the nation's trade office. The release noted that the Ministry of Commerce wishes to see Microsoft take a "proactive part" in the joint venture for AI between China and the US. Microsoft, mentioned to be one of the major players in AI, made headlines when it put resources into OpenAI, ChatGPT developer, with a reported mammoth investment this year. A number of China's tech titans, from Baidu and Tencent to Alibaba, are also introducing their own AI technologies and corresponding products.
In the last few years, cutting-edge technology has been a source of dispute between the US and China. The US government has sought to cut off China's access to critical technologies such as semiconductors and recently energized export limitations meant for Nvidia chips, which are used to train AI models. Xi and Biden's meeting acknowledged the importance of “addressing the risks of advanced AI systems and improving AI safety through U.S.-China government talks," as the White House report indicated. It appears as though Wang and Smith's meeting resonated with this.
As Washington-Beijing tensions intensified, meetings between U.S. tech firms and the Chinese government became noticeably more scarce. What's more, the majority of American tech companies are not operating in China -- Google parent Alphabet and Meta's offerings are not available in the country, for instance. This year, though, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Tesla's Elon Musk ventured to China, which is Apple's third-largest market and the location of Tesla's most substantial factory. The trip coincided with the easing of the stringent Covid-19 regulations that were lifted in 2022 and Beijing's desire to attract foreign enterprises. Reportedly, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella expressed during his meeting with the Chinese Ministry of Commerce that his company looks forward to “actively participating” in the digital transformation of China's economy and is steadfast in developing economic and trade cooperation between China and the U.S. When contacted by CNBC for remarks, Microsoft was unavailable.
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