《TAIPEI TIMES》 Taiwan key to US-led AI efforts: think tank

A representational image of artificial intelligence. Photo: Reuters

TECH TRAP: Countries that gain leadership in AI would have lasting influence, and the US and its allies must build a diverse AI ecosystem to counter Beijing, the think tank said

By William Hetherington / Staff writer, with CNA A commentary from a US think tank says Taiwan should play a key role in the US-led effort to build an open and resilient artificial intelligence （AI） ecosystem as China expands its AI diplomacy.

China is seeking to advance AI diplomacy that could create a far-reaching “technology trap,” Patrick Cronin, Asia-Pacific security chair at the Washington-based Hudson Institute, and research associate Lai Pin-shan （賴品杉） said.

In a co-authored article titled “How the US Can Counter China’s Emerging Tech Trap,” published on Thursday last week by The Diplomat, the two urge the US to work with partners such as Taiwan to build an open, resilient and diverse AI ecosystem rather than one dominated by a single authoritarian power.

Discussion over how Washington should respond to China’s rapidly advancing AI capabilities has intensified, partly after Beijing-based startup Moonshot AI unveiled its Kimi K3 model, which has narrowed the gap with models developed by US companies such as OpenAI and Anthropic.

China has entered a new phase of strategic competition, Cronin and Lai said. Following the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese President Xi Jinping （習近平） is seeking to export an entire AI ecosystem including chips, cloud infrastructure, foundation models, standards, applications, workforce training and governance.

They warn that the deeper countries become embedded in this infrastructure, the harder it would be to break away. If the Belt and Road Initiative created debt traps, Beijing’s latest initiative could produce an even more consequential “technology trap,” they said.

The article identifies China’s emerging AI diplomacy as centered on the newly established World AI Cooperation Organization, supported by AI application centers, open-source models, technical training, digital standards and infrastructure assistance. The authors describe this as the latest evolution of Beijing’s overarching strategy, combining diplomacy with the AI technology stack.

Although Washington and Beijing remain engaged in managed competition in the Indo-Pacific region, Cronin and Lai said that the decisive contest is no longer limited to the military balance in the western Pacific. Instead, it concerns who would shape the technological foundations of future economies, governments and societies. Countries that establish leadership in AI and other critical technologies would gain lasting economic, military and geopolitical influence, they said.

China’s AI diplomacy serves several strategic objectives, including enhancing domestic technological self-sufficiency, expanding the global reach of Chinese companies, creating long-term dependence among developing countries and increasing Beijing’s geopolitical influence, they said.

The UK’s AI Security Institute estimates that China’s gap with the US in frontier AI models has narrowed from about nine months to four or five months.

However, Cronin and Lai said that the competition is not simply about developing the world’s most powerful AI model. Rather, it is about whether dozens of emerging economies would build their digital infrastructure around an ecosystem ultimately shaped by the Chinese Communist Party. Countries that align their digital futures with China’s AI ecosystem risk not only commercial dependence but also political leverage, they added.

To compete globally, the authors say the US and its allies must offer not only advanced technologies, but also coordinated standards, financing, infrastructure and long-term strategic planning. They point to initiatives such as Pax Silica, which aims to bolster semiconductor and critical mineral supply chains, as well as the US innovation ecosystem led by companies including Nvidia, OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft, Amazon and Google.

Washington also needs a comprehensive AI diplomacy strategy to help countries develop sovereign digital capabilities without becoming dependent on any single authoritarian technology ecosystem, they said, adding that establishing a dedicated AI stack development fund to help partners finance secure and interoperable AI infrastructure could be the answer.

The article says the US advantage lies in offering openness rather than coercion, interoperability rather than exclusivity, and resilient partnerships rather than political leverage. Japan, South Korea, Australia, Taiwan and other partners contribute world-class capabilities in semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, cloud infrastructure, AI applications and digital governance, they said.

Together, these countries could provide an open, resilient and genuinely diverse AI ecosystem rather than one dominated by a single authoritarian power, they added.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES