The Art of AI: An interview with Kai-Fu Lee

Editor's note: A leading figure in the Chinese tech scene and in artificial-intelligence development globally, Kai-Fu Lee earned a PhD in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University in 1988 before serving in executive roles at Apple, SGI, Microsoft, and Google, where he was president of Google China. Now chairman and CEO of Sinovation Ventures in Beijing, he is the author of AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order. Here, he discusses with Project Syndicate the global AI race, the current state of the field, and what may – and should – come next. Question: As someone who long worked for U.S. companies and now oversees a tech venture capital firm, you're deeply familiar with the world's two main settings for AI development and research. What are the trade-offs of each R&D environment?