(Yicai Global) Sept. 25 -- "I believe that China and the US will become the two giants in the artificial intelligence sector because of their economic and technological strengths, as well as the emphasis they are putting on it," said Harry Shum, the executive vice president of Microsoft's one-year-old Artificial Intelligence and Research group. Computer vision expert Shum gave an exclusive interview to Yicai Global at the World AI Conference 2018 that was held in Shanghai from Sept. 17 to Sept. 19. 

Yicai Global: What do you think are the differences between the US and China in their AI research methods? What are the advantages and chances for cooperation?

Harry Shum: "The methods that scientists from both the US and China adopt in AI research are quite identical and require a large amount of data, microchips and an upgrade of calculating capability, including cloud computing."

The chief of the Washington-based lab also pointed out some new trends in the field, such as explainable AI. "Although AI has achieved a lot of results regarding technologies, it is also important to know why they are what they are and how to explain them. The second is how to conduct AI research related to safety and privacy, in which a lot of progress has been made."

YG: What are the disparities between China and other countries in the field?

Shum: The US has taken the lead in basic research. China should also make inroads into this fundamental field of study, including the integration of AI and brain science. Another important thing is the cultivation of talent. The more organically academy and industry are connected, the more meaningful research topics will the professors have.

YG: How can AI empower traditional industries in Chinese cities such as Shanghai?

Shum: "AI has offered a lot of help to our cities. For example, road cameras can assist us in monitoring the traffic and increase the efficacy of transportation."

"People may have misunderstood that AI robots may be harmful to human beings, while the most important function for them is still as tools. AI will only become significant once its integrated with all industry vertical, such as healthcare, transportation and manufacturing."

YG: You once said that the most difficult thing for a large company like Microsoft is to decide what not to do rather than the other way around. How does Microsoft decide what technologies to pursue?

Shum: "The world outlook for Microsoft is quite clear. It's smart cloud and smart terminals, ubiquitous computing and AI that exists everywhere. Those are our current focus and will be the direction for the development in the next decade or maybe the next two decades."

YG: With the rapid development of AI, many worry over their jobs so what does Microsoft do to maintain the core competitiveness of humans?

Shum: Microsoft has decided to collaborate with other large tech firms to try to solve any arising problems, as well as established a committee of ethics that aims to evaluate the safety of every product and service before launch.

YG: With the increasing automation in new fields such as finance and traffic, how can errors be avoided?

Shum: "There will be many problems when some automated systems make decisions, which are not limited to technical problems but more social problems and problems related to laws."

For example, if a car driver has to decide whether to turn left to hit a senior citizen or turn right to run over a kid, the situation may be too shocking for a person to handle. But a driverless vehicle cannot resort to such answers.

YG: What are the principles in the research of AI?

Shum: "We are not aiming to replace human beings with AI, but expanding their intelligence and capabilities. AI can be the extension of our brains to make us achieve a better future -- just like with steam engines to provide more power and cars enabling us to go further."

Shum also said that he supports more governmental agency in monitoring smart technologies, similarly to Microsoft's Chief Executive Satya Nadella, while hailing the importance of seeing robots as an opportunity for the entire industrial ecosystem. 

Editor: Emmi Laine