84 BOOK REVIEW Vol. 103 No. 3

Finding humanity in the great power competition for artificial intelligence

BY J. ZHANNA MALEKOS SMITH

recently spoke on artificial intelli- States in developing and deploy- gence, law, and ethics as a panelist ing artificial intelligence. In my at the International Conference view, that lead in AI deployment Ion Unmanned Aircraft Systems in will translate into productivity Atlanta. At the end of our discussion, gains on a scale not seen since the moderator asked each panelist to the Industrial Revolution. . . . This recommend a book to the audience. new AI world order will be partic- Without hesitation, I recommended AI ularly jolting to Americans who Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and have grown accustomed to a near- the New World Order by Dr. Kai-Fu Lee1 total dominance of the technolog- — a book first recommended to me by ical sphere.5 U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. The Four Waves of Artificial I pass along the recommendation Intelligence eagerly, and not just to those who are Lee outlines the four waves of AI keenly interested in cyber law, as I am. research and development: (1) inter- AI Superpowers offers a timely and net artificial intelligence; (2) business important view on the rapid develop- artificial intelligence; (3) perception ment of artificial intelligence, China’s artificial intelligence; and (4) autono- relentless drive to dominate the field, mous artificial intelligence.6 and the need for a strong moral vision AI Superpowers: Internet artificial intelligence relies to guide this new era of technological China, Silicon Valley, and on users’ preferences and decision- innovation. the New World Order making to label data while browsing. Kai-Fu Lee is widely regarded as one (2018, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) Internet users are well familiar with of the world’s top researchers on arti- BY KAI FU LEE this practice, whether they know it or ficial intelligence. He is the founder, not. When you use an internet search chairman, and CEO of Sinovation engine like or Bing and it offers Ventures and previously served as the ing is an accepted practice amongst search suggestions as you’re typing president of Google China. He presents competitors. your keywords — that’s an example of a fascinating comparative study of the “Every day spent in China’s startup internet AI. technology startup culture in Beijing scene is a trial by fire, like a day spent Business artificial intelligence is and Silicon Valley. Silicon Valley entre- as a gladiator in the Coliseum,” he when information about individuals’ preneurs are industrious, innovative, writes.3 “The battles are life or death, preferences is aggregated and used to and explorative, he says, but “sluggish” and your opponents have no scruples.”4 feed algorithms for commercial pur- in comparison to China’s cutthroat tech Corporate America, he warns, is poses. Business AI essentially “mines scene.2 In order to compete in Chinese unprepared for China’s bid to domi- these databases for hidden correla- markets, Lee says companies must be nate markets around the globe: tions that often escape the naked eye resilient. They also must constantly I believe that China will soon and human brain. It draws on all the improve their products because copy- match or even overtake the United historic decisions and outcomes within Judicature 85

[LEE] URGES US TO “FORGE A an organization and uses labeled data imagined along a spectrum from auto- to train an algorithm that can out- NEW SYNERGY matic, semi-autonomous, and fully perform even the most experienced BETWEEN autonomous capabilities. With regard human practitioners.”7 to the broad development and applica- For example, imagine shopping on ARTIFICIAL tion of military AI, the Congressional Amazon.com for a gift for a friend – INTELLIGENCE Research Service’s report Artificial you are looking at a particular brand Intelligence and National Security notes of sports wristwatch and clicking AND THE that AI technologies have already been through various styles to compare. In HUMAN HEART, incorporated into military operations searching, you notice that the website in Iraq and Syria. Further, by 2035 the is encouraging you to look at similar AND LOOK FOR Joint Force is expected to have imple- brands based on your search history. mented human machines teaming with These suggestions are indicators of WAYS TO USE THE armed robotics in warfighting based on your AI-generated consumer profile — FORTHCOMING the 2016 Joint Concept for Robotic and business artificial intelligence at work. Autonomous Systems.11 The third wave of artificial intelli- MATERIAL gence, perception artificial intelligence, ABUNDANCE Technology and Compassion refers to deep machine learning and What distinguishes AI Superpowers neural networks. With perception arti- GENERATED BY from other books on artificial intelli- ficial intelligence, algorithms are able ARTIFICIAL gence? This book has heart. Lee urges to interpret and identify shapes and us to see the development of AI not images in the way a human would. Lee INTELLIGENCE as a race to global conquest, but as an explains that “[a]lgorithms can now TO FOSTER opportunity to work collaboratively in group the pixels from a photo or video developing technology that can trans- into meaningful clusters and recog- LOVE AND form our world for the betterment of all. nize objects much in the same way COMPASSION Lee came to a new understanding of our brain does . . . . The same goes for AI’s humanitarian potential as he bat- audio data.”8 The book offers several IN OUR tled stage IV lymphoma. His cancer examples, such as Amazon’s Echo and SOCIETIES.” shook him from an “obsessive ded- Alibaba’s Citybrain, which rely upon ication” to be one of the world’s top deep-learning algorithms to analyze researchers in artificial intelligence data and provide users with real-time are a concern of the U.S. Intelligence and to work toward more humanitar- assessments of the environment, Community based on the 2019 ian goals. whether at home or waiting in traffic Worldwide Threat Assessment report. In the chapter, “The Wisdom of on the highway. The report states that adversaries and Cancer,” Lee writes: “In an instant, Recent news headlines also offer strategic competitors “probably will my world of mental algorithms and examples of the malicious uses of per- attempt to use deepfakes to create personal achievements came crash- ception artificial intelligence — for convincing — but false — image, audio, ing down. None of those things could instance, the infamous “Drunk Pelosi” and video files to augment influence save me now, or give me comfort and a video. In May 2019, a fake video of an campaigns directed against the United sense of meaning. Like so many forced apparently drunken U.S. House Speaker States and our allies and partners.”10 to suddenly face their own mortality, I Nancy Pelosi emerged on Facebook. Lee calls the fourth wave auton- was filled with fear for my future and The video showed Pelosi slurring her omous artificial intelligence. Here, with a deep soul-aching regret over words and appearing intoxicated. It autonomy refers to the ability of a the way I lived my life.”12 received more than 2.5 million views machine to function without a human He asks readers to imagine their and was Tweeted by several U.S. pol- operator. Consider autonomous weap- own grave and ask: What do I want to iticians — including President Donald ons systems: Human control over have written on my gravestone? For Trump.9 These sorts of altered videos autonomous weapon systems can be Lee, the answer might be something u 86 BOOK REVIEW Vol. 103 No. 3

1 about having helped to bring human- Ultimately, Lee’s book left me with Kai-Fu Lee, AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, ity to artificial intelligence. He urges us this hope: If there must be a great and the New World Order (2018). 2 Id. at 15. to “forge a new synergy between arti- power “race” in the development of 3 Id. ficial intelligence and the human heart, artificial intelligence, may the race ulti- 4 Id. 5 and look for ways to use the forth- mately be steered by logic and ethics Id. at 18. 6 Id. at 105. coming material abundance generated — with politics just tagging along for 7 Id. at 110. by artificial intelligence to foster love the ride. 8 Id. at 117. 9 and compassion in our societies.”13 CBS News, “Doctored Nancy Pelosi Video High- J. ZHANNA lights Threat of ‘Deepfake’ Tech,” CBS News Achieving this, he says, is essential for (May 25, 2019), https://www.cbsnews.com/ future economic prosperity and spiri- MALEKOS news/doctored-nancy-pelosi-video-highlights- threat-of-deepfake-tech-2019-05-25/. SMITH is a research 10 tual growth. Daniel R. Coats, Director of National Intelligence, The AI great power competition delegate in Stanford Statement for the Record: Nationwide Threat As- University’s U.S.-Russia sessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community 7 (Jan. between the U.S. and China is often 29, 2019), https://www.odni.gov/files/ODNI/ Forum for 2019-2020. documents/2019-ATA-SFR---SSCI.pdf. explained using an arms race meta- 11 She served as a captain Congressional Research Service, Artificial Intelli- phor. In a refreshing way, Lee’s book gence and National Security 16 (Updated Jan. 30, avoids such language. Instead, he offers in the U.S. Air Force Judge Advocate 2019), https://fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R45178. pdf. General’s Corps and has held fellowships 12 a clear-eyed and frank assessment of Lee, supra note 1, at 176. U.S. and Chinese artificial intelligence with Duke University Law School as the 13 Id. at 199. capabilities and ambitions — and the Reuben Everett Cyber Scholar, the Belfer prediction that China will outpace the Center’s Cyber Security Project at the U.S. in developing internet artificial Harvard Kennedy School, and Madeleine intelligence and perception artificial K. Albright Institute for Global Affairs at intelligence within the next five years. Wellesley College.

Leading the Way

King & Spalding is a proud sponsor of Judicature.

kslaw.com Judicature 87

Jones Day congratulates Bolch Judicial Institute of Duke Law School for its scholarly contributions to the field of law through its publication of Judicature.

2500 LAWYERS. 43 LOCATIONS. 5 CONTINENTS. ONE FIRM WORLDWIDE.® JONESDAY.COM

Latham & Watkins LLP is proud to sponsor Judicature

LW.com

Beijing Century City Düsseldorf Hong Kong Los Angeles Moscow Orange County Rome Seoul Singapore Chicago Frankfurt Houston Madrid Munich Paris San Diego Shanghai Tokyo Brussels Dubai Hamburg London Milan New York Riyadh* San Francisco Silicon Valley Washington, D.C.

* In cooperation with the Law Office of Salman M. Al-Sudairi