Google is opening an AI center in China

Even though its search engine, Gmail service, maps, and docs are blocked in the country, Google has announced that its first AI center to open in Asia will be located in Beijing, China. Google Chief Scientist Fei-Fei Li said it would launch at the Google Developer Days event in Shanghai today. The company said the center will focus on basic artificial intelligence research and will consist of a team of AI researchers in Beijing, who will be supported by Google engineers based in China. Li said she would be leading and coordinating the research alongside Dr. Jia Li, the head of research and development at Google Cloud AI. It joins other AI groups from locations around the world, including New York, Toronto, London, and Zurich, who will work with the researchers in Beijing. It's been seven years since Google Search left China, but the company is increasingly turning toward AI as a way of reentering what is the world's largest online market.