The city of Shanghai has launched a new investment consortium aimed at supporting budding new artificial intelligence startups. The AI-themed investment was officially launched at the sidelines of the 2020 World AI Conference in Shanghai on Friday last week.
The initiative, called the Shanghai AI Reception Hall, will be supporting companies, schools, investment funds, and other major players that are involved in developing AI technologies. Shanghai is hoping to make the consortium a one-stop-shop for AI companies to further the city's push for further AI development.
The consortium, which is under the Shanghai AI Industrial Investment Fund, will include a committee of experts comprised of CEOs, CTOs, and engineers in the AI field. It will also include a number of training programs aimed at startups, which will provide guidance to their future growth and development.
Apart from technical support, the initiative will also feature a specialized investment club aimed at connecting AI startups to interested investors and investment funds. Shanghai's deputy secretary-general, Chen Mingbo, stated that the city was chosen to become the country's AI hub primarily for its accumulated advantages such as its massive talent pool, industries, and technologies.
Chen added that the establishment of the AI consortium is part of China's larger effort to support six key industrial clusters, which includes robotics, semiconductors, autonomous driving, and smart cities.
During one of the sub-forums, SenseTime CEO Xu Li stated that the advancement of AI technologies should help address major issues plaguing various industries, including issues that have yet to be encountered or identified. Megvii CEO Yin Qi echoed Xu's sentiments and added that AI technologies can actually be applied to every aspect of everyone's lives but cautioned that companies and governments should be aware of the social, legal, and governance implications of such integration.
Apart from bolstering the further growth of AI startups, Shanghai is also playing a key role in establishing proper guidelines for the use of AI technologies. On Friday, city officials publicly released Shanghai's new Action Proposals on Collaborative Implementation of the Consensus Principles of AI Governance. Qi stated during his speech at the AI event that AI technologies will only be sustainable if all players will be responsible with its proper application and use.
Foreign dignitaries such as the minister of state for artificial intelligence of the United Arab Emirates, Omar Sultan Al Olama, agreed with Qi's statement. The minister mentioned in his video speech that responsible development and deployment should be a top priority to achieve a sustainable future with AI technologies.
