AI Superpowers

Kai-Fu Lee argues that advances in artificial intelligence are arriving faster than most people expected, so the changes they bring to work will come sooner than many assume. As rivalry between American and Chinese AI intensifies, he urges both countries to accept the serious responsibilities that come with major technological power.

The common view holds that AI will mainly disrupt factory and manual labour. Lee contends that white-collar professions will feel the same pressure, leading to large-scale job loss. He doubts that universal basic income is the answer, and instead maps which roles are most exposed, when the disruption is likely, and which jobs AI can enhance.

Lee is a former president of Google China and the founder of Sinovation Ventures, a venture capital firm. The book introduces four waves of AI (internet, business, perception and autonomous) as a framework for understanding how each will reshape the world. It also compares China with Silicon Valley, arguing that the determination of Chinese entrepreneurs and the country's vast troves of data give it an edge in the era of implementation.

The book's central warning is that AI will displace workers in both blue-collar and white-collar jobs, deepening inequality within nations and between them. Lee closes with a proposal for using AI-generated wealth to free people to focus on shared humanity, compassion and creativity.