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Israel's defence minister said on Wednesday Israeli troops will not withdraw from southern Lebanon, highlighting a hurdle to Iran-U.S. peace talks, as...
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.
Tehran has agreed to let the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recommence inspections of its nuclear programme, U.S. Vice President JD Vance has said. The U.S. and Iran have settled on a 60-day roadmap aimed at reaching a final deal, according to mediators Qatar and Pakistan.
A Ukrainian strike has damaged a school building in a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, according to local authorities cited by the TASS news agency. No injuries were reported in the incident.
Israel's defence minister said on Wednesday Israeli troops will not withdraw from southern Lebanon, highlighting a hurdle to Iran-U.S. peace talks, as the top U.S. diplomat tours the Middle East to win over allies sceptical about a proposed deal.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that Iran had agreed to nuclear inspections into "infinity, despite Tehran's denials, and that unfrozen Iranian assets would be used to buy humanitarian supplies from the United States.
Authorities in France are reporting that about 20 people have died over the weekend while swimming in unsupervised areas of rivers, lakes and coastal waters as they tried to escape the heatwave.
China’s anti-corruption authorities have launched an investigation into Bian Zhigang, a senior defence and space official, over suspected serious violations of discipline and law, officials said on Wednesday.
Alibaba, one of the world's largest technology and e-commerce companies, has sued the U.S. Pentagon after being added to a blacklist of firms it claims support China's military, escalating a dispute with potentially significant consequences for the company.
The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog has said inspections in Iran will resume in the near future following an interim peace agreement between Tehran and Washington. However, Iranian officials insist access to key facilities remains contingent on a final deal and the lifting of sanctions.
Pakistan and Russia have agreed to deepen counterterrorism cooperation amid continuing concerns over militant threats emanating from Afghanistan, underlining growing alignment between the two countries on regional security.
Andy Burnham's path to Downing Street appeared to become clearer on Wednesday after another potential challenger ruled himself out of the Labour leadership race.
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