Chinese tech firms narrowing pay gap with Silicon Valley as state pours money into IT, surveillance

BEIJING – China's war for technology talent is intensifying. Tens of thousands of people are being hired to shore up cybersecurity, censor online content, and try to make China No. 1 in the application of artificial intelligence as capital pours into both startups and more mature businesses at a time when the government is demanding rapid development. "Companies are well-funded and are in serious competition for talent," said Thomas Liang, a former executive at Chinese search giant Baidu who is now running an AI-focused fund. He said that startups in hot sectors like AI often have to offer 50 to 100 percent pay raises to attract employees away from established technology firms. China's emergence as a global center for technology, with champions such as Alibaba and Tencent now worth more than $1 trillion combined, has led to a hiring boom and wage growth that has started to put salaries for the top talent within striking distance of those offered in Silicon Valley. And while that should please the Chinese government as it seeks to create higher-paying jobs and move up the value chain, it could also add to income inequality in China as wages in nontech jobs lag, and as the sector's recruitment and income gains tend to be concentrated in the biggest cities such as Beijing and Shenzhen.