China’s Biggest Technology Groups Build AI Teams in Silicon Valley
China’s biggest technology groups are building artificial intelligence teams in Silicon Valley, seeking to hire top US talent despite Washington’s efforts to curb the country’s development of the cutting-edge technology.
The Push
Alibaba, ByteDance and Meituan have been expanding their offices in California in recent months, seeking to poach staff from rival US groups who could help them make up ground in the race to profit from generative AI.
Despite US Efforts
The push comes despite US efforts to stymie their work. Chinese groups have been hit by a US ban on exports of the highest-end Nvidia AI chips, which are crucial for developing AI models.
However, there are currently no restrictions on US-based entities related to or owned by Chinese tech companies accessing high-end AI chips through data centers located in the US.
The Department of Commerce proposed introducing a rule in January that cloud providers have to verify the identity of users training AI models and report their activities.
Alibaba’s Recruitment Efforts
Alibaba is recruiting an AI team in Sunnyvale in California’s San Francisco Bay Area and has approached engineers, product managers and AI researchers who have worked at OpenAI and the biggest US tech groups, according to three people familiar with the matter.
China’s biggest ecommerce group has posted recruitment advertisements on LinkedIn for an applied scientist, machine-learning engineer and product marketing manager in the US.
The team will focus on Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group’s AI-powered search engine Accio for merchants, another person added.
One Alibaba recruiter emailed tech workers in the US saying the Chinese ecommerce company planned to spin off the Californian AI team into a separate start-up, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Meituan’s Expansion
In the past few months, Meituan has been building out its team in California after executives grew alarmed that it was falling behind on AI, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Chief executive Wang Xing has tapped co-founder Wang Huiwen to return to the company to lead a new generative AI team called GN06, which is exploring AI-related opportunities, including menu translation features and AI companions, according to one of the people.
TikTok owner ByteDance has the most established AI footprint in California, with multiple teams working on different projects.
One research team is focused on integrating AI features into TikTok. It also has a group of researchers working on its Doubao large language model, alongside colleagues in China and Singapore, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.
Conclusion
China’s biggest technology groups are investing in AI teams in Silicon Valley, despite US efforts to curb their development of the cutting-edge technology. Alibaba, ByteDance, and Meituan are seeking to poach top US talent to make up ground in the race to profit from generative AI.
FAQs
Q: What are the US efforts to curb China’s development of AI?
A: The US has imposed a ban on exports of the highest-end Nvidia AI chips, which are crucial for developing AI models.
Q: Why is China building AI teams in Silicon Valley?
A: China is seeking to poach top US talent to make up ground in the race to profit from generative AI.
Q: What is the Department of Commerce proposing to do regarding AI?
A: The Department of Commerce proposed introducing a rule in January that cloud providers have to verify the identity of users training AI models and report their activities.
