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President Putin announced Russia's AI Alliance Network with BRICS nations and other partners, aiming to challenge U.S. dominance in AI. This collaboration seeks to advance research, regulation, and market opportunities in the AI sector.
President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia would develop artificial intelligence with BRICS partners and other countries, in a bid to challenge the dominance of the United States in one of the most promising and crucial technologies of the 21st century.
Speaking at Russia's flagship AI conference, Putin said the new AI Alliance Network would include national associations and development institutions in the field of AI from BRICS countries and other interested states.
"Russia must participate on equal terms in the global race to create strong artificial intelligence. It is precisely the advanced solutions that Russian scientists are currently working on," Putin told an AI conference in Moscow.
"We invite scientists from all over the world to join in the collaboration," he added.
Western sanctions intended to restrict Russia's access to the technologies it needs to sustain its war against Ukraine have resulted in the world's major producers of microchips halting exports to Russia, sorely limiting its AI ambitions.
Russia's dominant lender Sberbank is spearheading AI development in Russia, but Sberbank CEO German Gref acknowledged in 2023 that graphics processing units (GPUs), the microchips that underpin AI development, were the trickiest hardware for Russia to replace.
On Wednesday, the bank said national AI associations from BRICS members Brazil, China, India and South Africa, but also from Serbia, Indonesia and other non-BRICS countries, had joined the AI Alliance Network.
It said the network would facilitate joint research into technology and AI regulation, and provide opportunities for AI products to be sold in member countries' markets.
RUSSIA SEEKS TO JOIN LEADING POWERS IN RACE FOR AI SUPREMACY
The United States and China are the world's top AI powers, and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has named a "White House AI and Crypto Czar" to help ensure the United States remains the richest and most technologically advanced power in the world.
But Putin's move to ally with China could change the dynamics of the AI race.
Russia is one of 10 countries, including the U.S., China, Britain and Israel, that are developing their own generative AI models. The Yakov and Partners consultancy, run by former McKinsey employees in Moscow, says this gives it the potential to become a much more significant player.
Russia sees the use of AI technologies across all sectors adding 11.2 trillion roubles ($109 billion) to gross domestic product in 2030, compared to 0.2 trillion roubles ($1.9 billion) in 2023.
Its AI strategy also says that 80% of all Russian workers should have AI skills by 2030, compared with 5% in 2023, while AI investment should grow seven-fold to 850 billion roubles.
Sberbank, which has developed a generative AI model called GigaChat, and technology leader Yandex, with its YandexGPT model, dominate Russia's domestic AI market.
Russia currently ranks 31st of 83 countries by AI implementation, innovation and investment on UK-based Tortoise Media's Global AI Index, well behind not only the United States and China but also fellow BRICS members India and Brazil.
Stanford University's AI vibrancy tool, which evaluates 36 countries based on 42 AI indicators including research and development, ranks Russia 29th.
The world’s biggest dance music festival faces an unexpected setback as a fire destroys its main stage, prompting a last-minute response from organisers determined to keep the party alive in Boom, Belgium.
China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will send an upgraded ‘version 3.0’ free-trade agreement to their heads of government for approval in October, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday after regional talks in Kuala Lumpur.
Germany's export slump since 2021 is largely driven by deep-rooted competitiveness issues, the Bundesbank warned in its latest report, calling for urgent structural reforms.
Israeli researchers have unveiled an artificial intelligence tool that can determine a person’s true biological age from tiny DNA samples with remarkable precision.
Two Harry Potter actresses, Emma Watson and Zoe Wanamaker, have each received a six-month driving ban after separate speeding offences, both sentenced on the same day at a Buckinghamshire court.
Nepal has banned access to the Telegram messaging app, citing its role in a growing number of online fraud and money laundering cases across the country.
North Korea has stopped foreign tourists from visiting its new Wonsan-Kalma resort just weeks after it welcomed the first Russian visitors.
U.S. President Donald Trump says Coca-Cola has agreed to use real cane sugar in the U.S., though the company has not confirmed the claim.
The U.S. ambassador to Türkiye says Israel and Syria have reached a ceasefire deal supported by Türkiye, Jordan, and regional actors after cross-border strikes this week heightened tensions.
The Trump administration has completed a controversial prisoner swap with Venezuela, returning around 250 deported Venezuelans in exchange for 10 American detainees.
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