GOOGLE is opening the world’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) lab in China – despite the search engine being banned there.
The company is focussing heavily on developing AI for products such as self-driving cars, facial recognition software and translation services.
Google said in a statement the centre is part of its mission to be an “AI first company”.
But this is despite the search engine giant being banned in Communist China, meaning the company will operate under incredibly strict rules.
China operates a “great firewall” that stops the vast majority of the population accessing information and websites the government considers politically sensitive.
“AI has the potential to make everyone’s life better for the entire world”
Fei-Fei Li, chief scientist at Google Cloud AI and Machine Learning, said: “Whether a breakthrough occurs in Silicon Valley, Beijing or anywhere else, [AI] has the potential to make everyone’s life better for the entire world.
