The AI Arms Race Isn’t Inevitable

Abstract

The framing of artificial intelligence (AI) development as an inevitable competition between nations, particularly between the US and China, risks escalating tensions and undermining global security. By portraying AI as a winner-take-all technology, US companies are incentivizing a dangerous race for dominance, which could lead to a new Cold War and potentially trigger conflict. The author argues that this framing not only misrepresents the actual state of AI development, where both US and Chinese labs are nearing parity, but also fails to consider the potential consequences of such a competitive approach. The article proposes that international cooperation on AI governance, aimed at ensuring shared access to AI technologies and fostering global collaboration, would be more beneficial than a competitive strategy, and would reduce the risk of conflict driven by fears of technological irrelevance and cultural dominance. – AI-generated abstract