According to a report by the US newspaper The New York Post on August 30th, as the United States continues to tighten restrictions on artificial intelligence technology with China, many American AI data companies are still doing business with Chinese companies. Some of these companies also undertake projects for the US government and military. However, even if some companies’ quarterly revenues from China account for only 2%, U.S. politicians cannot tolerate this situation and are forcing these companies to choose either Chinese customers or contracts with the US government.
Reports indicate that four American companies, namely Surge AI, Mercor, AfterQuery, and Turing, provide services such as data processing, annotation, and professional training data for AI models. Their clients include American technology companies like Anthropic, Google, Meta, and OpenAI. Some of these companies have also obtained contracts from the Pentagon or other US government departments, but they also have business relationships with Chinese companies.
American Republican Representative Michael McCaul, former chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has used this opportunity to promote the so-called ‘AI race’ between China and the United States. He claims that the United States cannot spend billions of dollars trying to maintain its technological advantage, while at the same time forcing domestic companies to sell professional talent and data services to companies that are allegedly ‘associated with the Chinese military’.
Source Image: McCoy
McCullough further pressed the issue, saying that if these companies want to continue to undertake government contracts, they should not also help companies listed by the Pentagon in developing AI technologies.
Four US companies listed above have yet to respond to comments requests from The New York Post.
According to data previously reported by Forbes, Surge AI has provided services for Chinese companies while also receiving small contracts from the U.S. Army and Air Force. Mercor reportedly received a contract from the U.S. government in July this year, and its revenue from China accounted for only about 2% of its income in the second quarter of this year.
High-quality data is an important resource for training AI models, especially data that has been screened, cleaned, and accurately labeled by professionals. Obtaining and processing such data is not easy. Therefore, The New York Post speculated that it may help Chinese AI companies enhance their competitiveness if American companies provide such services to Chinese customers.
In recent years, the US has continuously restricted China from obtaining advanced chips and related technologies under the pretext of so-called “national security”. Now, some American politicians have turned their attention to data services, attempting to expand the technological restrictions on China beyond hardware such as chips, into areas such as data and talent.
China has previously emphasized that artificial intelligence is profoundly transforming ways of production and lifestyle, and it is a new issue that humanity must face together. Artificial intelligence is not a patent of only major countries, and it should not turn into a source of competition and confrontation. China always adheres to the principles of putting people first, being open and inclusive, and striving for benefits and goodness through artificial intelligence.
