Isaac Stone Fish, CEO of Strategy Risks and a fellow at the Atlantic Council, dives into the escalating AI race with China and the associated risks of authoritarian values shaping our future. He highlights China's ambitious strategies in the tech space and the implications for global governance. The discussion also addresses the U.S.-China tensions and how China's actions could threaten net neutrality and free speech. With insights on the ethical dilemmas in foreign policy, Fish unveils the complexities of navigating international relations in a tech-driven world.
01:13:36
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
menu_book Books
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
insights INSIGHT
Naive Assumptions on China Trade
The U.S. initially engaged China hoping trade and business would liberalize its governance.
This assumption was naive; China prioritized its own interests and authoritarian control instead.
insights INSIGHT
Why Winning the AI Race with China is a Matter of Global Control and Security
Isaac Stone Fish outlines a critical perspective on the AI race with China, emphasizing that Beijing's ambition is not just technological leadership but also shaping AI to reflect authoritarian values and maintain control. Chinese AI development is deeply influenced by censorship and the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) desire to control narratives both domestically and globally, posing risks of weaponization in geopolitical conflict. Unlike fears of rogue AI, the real concern is how China might use AI for state surveillance, social profiling, and influence operations globally, including accessing critical data through companies like Grindr. This competition impacts national security, privacy, and the future nature of AI governance, making the race existential beyond mere economic or technological progress.
insights INSIGHT
Governance Over AI Threats
The real AI threat is governance weaponizing AI in conflict, not sci-fi fears of AI dominance.
AI will be a potent tool and weapon in future global conflicts, including a likely World War III.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
The book examines how Chinese Communist Party influence in the U.S. has grown through relationships with American elites, including politicians, academics, and business leaders. Stone Fish argues that these connections, often financial, have led to self-censorship and policy decisions favoring China, while offering solutions to counter this dynamic without resorting to xenophobia.
This week, Ron Steslow and Isaac Stone Fish (CEO and founder of Strategy Risks) discuss what it means to win the AI race with China, what the CCP’s ambitions are, and whether we could be sleepwalking into a future shaped by authoritarian values.
Then, in Politicology+ they discuss how China is rushing to fill the soft power vacuum left by the U.S. retreat by pushing for changes that could threaten the free and open internet.
Not yet a Politicology+ member? Don’t miss all the extra episodes on the private, ad-free version of this podcast. Upgrade now at politicology.com/plus.
Politicology 