Schmidt was speaking at a Senate hearing on emerging technologies.

Eric Schmidt, who was CEO of Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL) from 2001 through 2011, warned Tuesday that the United States is “one or two years ahead of China, not five or 10” and “the Chinese are well ahead in areas like face recognition.”

Schmidt is also the chairman of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, established in 2018 through the John S. McCain National Defence Authorisation Act.

He was speaking at a hearing by the Senate Armed Services Committee on emerging technologies and their impact on national security. (South China Morning Post)

China’s ascendancy on AI: A very real threat

“Because of the diffusion of the technology, you have to expect that anything that’s invented in the open-source AI world will immediately be adopted by China,” said Schmidt. “The threat is very, very real.”

China has made massive advances in AI after it introduced its “Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan” in 2017. The Plan aims to catapult China into global AI leadership by 2030. It hopes the country would become “the world’s premier artificial intelligence innovation center.”

In September, Defense Secretary Dr. Mark T. Esper said of China that the country was “constructing a 21st-century surveillance state designed to wield unprecedented control over its own people,” and one that could censor dissent in real-time.

He said the country would apply the “leapfrog technology” to its military arsenal. He was referring to China’s plans to become the AI world leader by 2030.

Schmidt: “Urgent” funding

Schmidt is already seeking funding of $100 billion to boost a research drive in key tech areas from AI to quantum computing and semiconductors.

He said at Tuesday’s hearing that the U.S. should bring in the private sector to help with the Chinese threat.

“The [US] government will need to help with some forms of funding, and we need to let the private sector build those things and make it successful,” said Schmidt.

“The private sector is America’s great strength. We move faster and globally than any government and need global platforms. Or we may be forced to use the Chinese ones which is a disaster.”

Related Story:   China’s Frightening, Orwellian Use Of AI