【南华早报】世界上人口最多的国家缺乏一个成为人工智能领袖的东西：人 [美国媒体]

World’s most populous nation lacks one thing to be AI leader: people

世界上人口最多的国家缺乏一个成为人工智能领袖的东西：人



World’s most populous country lacks the one thing it needs to become an AI powerhouse: enough talented people

世界上人口最多的国家缺乏成为一个人工智能强国的唯一因素:足够多的人才

China faces a severe talent shortage in its quest to become a global powerhouse in artificial intelligence by 2030

到2030年，中国将面临严重的人才短缺问题，其目标是成为全球人工智能领域的全球强国。

David Wei’s employer, a Beijing-based artificial intelligence start-up, doubled his previous salary and offered share options to entice him to come and work on the company’s AI-powered software for the legal industry.

David Wei的雇主，一家总部位于北京的人工智能初创公司，将他的薪水提高了一倍，并提供了股票期权，以吸引他来公司开发为法律行业服务的，基于人工智能的软件。

“My friends advised me to stay put and complete at least a full year so that it won’t look bad on my resume,” said Wei, who has a postgraduate degree in applied mathematics from Harbin Institute of Technology, one of China’s best-known universities, along with Tsinghua and Peking University, when it comes to science and engineering.

"我的朋友们建议我待在这里至少要一年，这样我的简历就不会很糟糕，"魏说，他在中国最着名的大学之一（与清华大学和北京大学一样），哈尔滨工业大学应用数学专业的研究生。

But with more than 10 recruiters calling him with job offers since the start of the year, the advice from his friends is looking increasingly outdated.

但自从今年年初以来，有10多名招聘人员给他打电话，他的朋友们的建议看起来越来越过时了。


  
China aims to outspend the world in artificial intelligence, and Xi Jinping just green lit the plan

【链接：中国的目标是在人工智能领域超越世界，习近平为这一计划点亮了绿灯】

The conference sets the course for key economic policies over the next year and delegates will likely discuss measures needed to achieve the targets set out in July when the State Council issued a roadmap to develop an AI industry worth over 1 trillion yuan (US$150 billion) by 2030.

大会为明年的主要经济政策制定了路线，代表们可能会讨论实现在今年7月制定的目标所需要的措施，国务院在2030年发布了发展一个价值超过1万亿人民币(1500亿美元)的人工智能产业的路线图。

Dubbed the fourth industrial revolution, the rise of AI – powerful supercomputers crunching data to identify patterns and teach themselves tasks – has fuelled concerns over its potential to put people out of work. One estimate by management consultancy McKinsey forecasts that 800 million jobs worldwide are at risk of being lost to automation by 2030.

被称为“第四次工业革命”的人工智能，以强大的超级计算机，通过分析数据来识别模式并自学任务，引发了人们对它可能会让人们失业的担忧。据管理咨询公司麦肯锡(McKinsey)估计，到2030年，全球将有8亿就业机会被自动化所取代。

In China, technology companies like Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the South China Morning Post, are experimenting with unmanned convenience stores and warehouses, and using AI to determine credit scores for Chinese consumers. JD.com, the online retailer, just announced an investment into driverless vehicles and is using drones to deliver parcels. Insurers and banks are using AI technology to power their ATMs and improve the customer risk-assessment process.

在中国，拥有《南华早报》(South China Morning Post)的阿里巴巴集团(Alibaba Group Holding)等科技公司正在试验无人便利店和货栈，并利用人工智能来确定中国消费者的信用评分。在线零售商京东(JD.com)刚刚宣布投资无人驾驶汽车，并使用无人机送货。保险公司和银行正在利用人工智能技术为他们的自动取款机供电，并改善客户的风险评估过程。

All of these artificial intelligence initiatives, ironically, require an abundances of human brainpower, which is why people like Wei are in such demand.

具有讽刺意味的是，所有这些人工智能计划都需要大量的人类智力，这就是为什么像魏这样的人如此亟需。

As of March, there were more than 1.9 million technology professionals working in the AI sector globally, according to LinkedIn statistics. While the US accounts for the lion’s share with 850,000, China ranked seventh with just over 50,000, trailing India, the UK and Canada and on par with Australia and France.

据LinkedIn统计，截至今年3月，全球有190多万技术专业人士在AI领域工作。美国在这方面的占比为85万人，中国排名第七，仅略高于5万人，落后于印度、英国和加拿大，与澳大利亚和法国不相上下。

China’s demand for AI professionals may surge to 5 million in a few years, Peop le’s Daily reported, citing Zhou Ming, an education vice-director at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

据中国工业和信息化部教育副主任周明介绍，中国对人工智能专业人士的需求在未来几年可能会激增至500万。

So far, China has been importing most of its AI talent from overseas because its home-grown AI talent remains scarce, according to LinkedIn’s Global AI Talent report published in July.

根据LinkedIn在7月份发布的全球人工智能人才报告，到目前为止，中国一直在从海外引进大部分人工智能人才，因为中国本土的人工智能人才仍然稀缺。



Roughly nine out of 10 AI positions advertised on the mainland go unfilled, unless companies venture out of China to hire, according to the professional networking platform. The number of China-based AI job postings on LinkedIn surged more than eight times over the past three years, from about 50,000 in 2014 to 440,000 in 2016, said Wang Di, vice-president of LinkedIn China.

根据专业网络平台的数据，在中国大陆招聘的10个AI中，约有9个是未完成招聘的，除非企业走出中国招聘。LinkedIn中国副总裁王迪表示，在过去三年里，中国的人工智能招聘信息在LinkedIn上的数量增长了8倍以上，从2014年的约5万增长到2016年的44万。

About 44 per cent of the overseas AI talent working in China come from the US, followed by the UK and France as the second and third source countries, according to LinkedIn.

LinkedIn表示，在中国工作的海外人工智能人才中，约有44%来自美国，其次是英国和法国，成为第二和第三个来源国家。

Researchers in machine learning, smart chips and algorithms are the most sought-after, according to Wang. Demand will continue to grow, with a survey by global risk advisory company Willis Towers Watson showing that Chinese tech firms project an average 20 per cent expansion in their AI teams next year.

据王说，机器学习、智能芯片和算法的研究人员是最受欢迎的。需求将继续增长，全球风险咨询公司Willis Towers Watson的一项调查显示，中国科技公司明年将在其人工智能团队中平均扩张20%。

“Many Chinese tech companies now visit top universities and headhunting firms on a regular basis, keeping an eye out and learning about the market. Their overseas recruitment plans would even have no limit when it comes to headcount or budget,” said Willis Towers Watson managing director Edward Hsu.

许多中国科技公司现在定期访问顶级大学和猎头公司，密切关注并了解市场情况。他们的海外招聘计划在员工人数和预算方面甚至是没有限制的。

In terms of recruitment strategies, Hsu said Chinese companies first try poaching AI talent from leading peers as well as hiring fresh graduates from home and abroad. Longer term, they are setting up overseas labs to attract foreign researchers and expatriate Chinese unwilling to return to China, while some are looking at outright acquisitions of competitors as a means to acquire the talent, he added.

在招聘策略方面，徐说，中国企业首先要从一流的同行中挖人才，并从国内外招聘应届毕业生。他补充说，从长远来看，他们正在设立海外实验室，以吸引外国研究人员和不愿返回中国的外籍华人，而一些人则在考虑直接收购竞争对手，以获取人才。

Indeed, a Silicon Valley presence is now seen as standard procedure for any mainland Chinese company serious about working in AI. Car hailing company Didi Chuxing, China’s answer to Uber, opened a US-based research lab in March after successfully poaching seasoned cybersecurity experts, including a former Uber researcher known for being able to hack cars with a laptop computer from miles away.

事实上，对于任何一家在人工智能方面工作的中国大陆公司来说，硅谷的存在都被视为一种标准程序。打车公司滴滴出行，中国的优步，在成功挖走了经验丰富的网络安全专家后，于三月份建立了一家美国研究实验室，其中包括一位前优步的研究人员，该研究人员因能够在数英里之外使用笔记本电脑黑掉汽车而闻名。

Tencent opened its own AI lab in Seattle, Washington state, in May while Alibaba pledged in October to invest over US$15 billion on AI research and development over the next three years with a plan to open seven labs worldwide aimed at beating similar research facilities built by IBM, Microsoft and Intel. Google this week announced the opening of an AI research group in Shanghai, its first in Asia, adding to existing facilities in New York, Toronto, London and Zurich.

今年5月，腾讯在华盛顿州西雅图市开设了自己的人工智能实验室，而阿里巴巴则于今年10月承诺，将在未来三年内投资150亿美元用于人工智能研发，并计划在全球开设7家实验室，旨在击败IBM、微软(Microsoft)和英特尔(Intel)的类似研究设施。谷歌本周宣布，将在上海开设一个人工智能研究小组，这是该集团在亚洲的首个研究项目，并增加了纽约、多伦多、伦敦和苏黎世的现有设施。

Shortage of talent may become the biggest barrier for China to achieve its AI dreams, said James Lewis, senior fellow at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a US-based think tank.

美国智库“战略与国际研究中心”高级研究员詹姆斯刘易斯表示，人才短缺可能成为中国实现人工智能梦想的最大障碍。

“Its AI road map is good, but China may need more time to build the workforce,” he said, adding that nurturing and growing a talent pool in technology can be a slow process.

"它的人工智能路线图很好，但中国可能需要更多的时间来建造劳动力，"他说，加上培育和培养技术的人才资源是一个缓慢的过程。

Even so, China’s economic strength and willingness to spend money gives it an advantage over the US or Europe, Lewis said.

即便如此，中国的经济实力和消费意愿使其相对于美国或欧洲有优势，刘易斯说。

It is coming down to competition between US and Chinese companies for the small pool of talent, and the recent Chinese “brain drain” is being reversed now that good AI scientists are being offered a “fair amount of pay” to work in China, he said.

他说，这是由于美国和中国企业争夺人才的竞争，最近中国的“人才流失”正在被逆转，因为优秀的人工智能科学家得到了在中国工作的“相当大的报酬”。

With over 700 AI-related companies in China, about US$2.6 billion of capital has flowed into the industry over the past four and a half years up to June, roughly one seventh of the amount going into the US but three times that of the UK, according to a joint report by Wuzhen Institute and NetEase.

根据乌镇研究院和网易的联合报告，在中国，有超过700家与AI相关的公司，大约有26亿美元的资本在过去四年半的时间里流入了这个行业，大约是美国的七分之一，但却是英国的三倍。

For Wei, the AI programmer in Beijing, the talent shortage is good news.

对于北京的人工智能程序员魏来说，人才短缺是个好消息。

“When I land at the next start-up, a 30 per cent pay rise will be the least I’ll get, although I could offer some discount if it’s already a tech giant,” he said, when asked about his salary expectations.

当被问及他的薪资预期时，他说:“当我在下一家初创企业工作时，我至少会得到30%的加薪，如果它已经是一个科技巨头的话，我可以给它一些折扣。”

However, coming from a remote village in northeast Shandong province, Wei admits to being shy about discussing his salary, even with close friends, in a country where he earns almost 40 times the average wage.

然而，来自山东省东北部一个偏远的村庄的魏承认羞于谈论他的薪水，即使是和他的好朋友，在这个国家，他的工资几乎是平均工资的40倍。



Tador Efann
After reading her article, this writer does not appear to me talented.

读了她的文章后，照我看来，这位作者并不是很有才华

Xactly
This is no news. When the personal computer phenomena took off in the US, there was a severe shortage of Engineers. Now there are too many. With lucrative offers, the talent pool will soon be filled up.
Too early to worry.

.这不是什么新闻。当电脑在美国兴起时，工程师的数量严重短缺。现在太多了。有了丰厚的回报，人才储备很快就会填补。
担心的太早了

SpadeySay@******
It would serve China well for the world to continue to believe that China lacks the talents to challenge the rest of the world. I don't actually see much downside for China in this belief by the rest of the world. It's good for China to keep a low profile on such matter.

中国将继续相信中国缺乏挑战世界其他国家的人才，这将有利于中国。我并不认为中国在这一信念上对世界其他国家有什么负面影响。对中国来说，在这类问题上保持低调是件好事。

stephen888oz
Obviously, SCMP lacks talented journalists! BTW, China also lacks talents to become a Ruby Union powerhouse.

显然，SCMP（南华早报）缺乏有才华的记者！顺便说下，中国也缺乏成为一个Ruby联盟强国的人才。

nansha2000@******
A lot of Hype. Some in Ukraine, Russia, Bosnia etc. could be working on AI. China will also have lots of talents. Why rush?
The world of IT or AI is on where collective brainpower innovate and move forward. It is not one super brain. Soon even the brains will not be enough. The AI computer takes over and do it much faster. Humans then decide which option to take

大肆炒作。一些乌克兰、俄罗斯、波斯尼亚等国家可能正在研发人工智能。中国也将有很多人才，为什么要着急?
IT界或人工智能领域是集体智慧的创新和前进的地方。它不是一个超级大脑。很快，即使是大脑也不够。人工智能电脑接管了它，并且做得更快。然后由人类来决定采取哪种选择

chngkooiseng@******
Many writers/analysts talk as if TIME has ended and they are tallying the scores. If you haven’t noticed there is only one bill gates, one zuckerberg etc. There should be dozens of them. The truth is LUCK. The talent will emerge, eg Jack Ma. Only time will tell. And it has not ended. Just wait.

许多作家/分析师说，时代已经完结，他们正在打分。如果你没有注意到，只有一个比尔·盖茨，一个扎克伯格等等，本应该有几十个这样的人的，真相是运气，天才会出现的，比如杰克·马。只有时间能告诉我们答案，而且它还没有结束，等着瞧。

Xactly
Here comes another "Freedom Fighter".
If what you said was true, then China would still be in the medi times.
Total Hog wash. 

又一个“自由斗士”。
如果你说的是真的，那么中国仍将处于中世纪。
完全是废话

Snorlax2468
Is this article a joke? I'll let you know that in my real life, I am a researcher. I read papers, and I regularly review papers for the top journals in my field. So I know very well that 'machine learning' is all the latest craze (even though this field is several decades old), and a large number of recent papers on this subject are done by either Chinese nationals working in foreign institutions, or increasingly, just Chinese researchers working from the mainland. There is no shortage of talent. China graduates many times more electrical engineers every year than the US. If there was one thing China needs to work on, it is holding onto local talent. Chinese are ultimately drawn by money wherever it can be made. So until China fully catches up on GDP per capita with the most developed countries (this won't happen until the 2040s-2050s), there will be an outward 'brain drain'. But note that as China gets rich, overseas Chinese are moving back, or working for Chinese companies in overseas research labs.

这篇文章是来搞笑的吗?我会让你知道在我的现实生活中，我是一个研究员。我阅读论文，定期为我所在领域的顶级期刊审阅论文。所以我很清楚，“机器学习”是最新的狂潮(尽管这一领域已经有几十年的历史了)，而且最近关于这个课题的大量论文都是由在外国机构工作的中国公民，或越来越多来自中国大陆的中国研究人员完成的。人才是不缺的。中国每年的电气工程师数量要比美国多出许多倍。

如果中国需要做一件事，那就是留住本地人才。无论在哪里，中国人最终都是被金钱所吸引。因此，在中国完全赶上最发达国家的人均GDP之前(这种情况要到2040 - 2050年才会发生)，就会出现“人才外流”。但请注意，随着中国的富裕，海外华人正在迁回，或在海外研究实验室为中国企业工作。

rogersmith777
I recently interviewed 32 graduate electronic engineers in Shenzhen. Not even one could draw a circuit diagram of a basic power supply unit sample given to them. A secondary school student from the west will do much better than that, I wonder how they got those nice buinder of certificates. Probably purchased from ALIBABA.

我最近在深圳采访了32位电子工程师。甚至连一个人都不能画出一个基本的电源单元样品的电路图。一名来自西方的中学生会做得更好，我想知道他们是如何得到那些漂亮的证书的，可能从阿里巴巴买来的。

Xactly
I suggest SCMP Remove rogersmith777 completely. He is damaging the normal operation of this forum. 

我建议SCMP完全删除rogersmith 777,他正在破坏这个论坛的正常运作。

q2010th@******
China lacking in AI talent, then the world especially the west should be thankful. China Set it's own path and timetable, she will not be detoured or discouraged by the media. The more the media bad mouth about China development, the stronger it becomes. This has been proven times and times again in many areas.

中国缺乏AI人才，那么世界尤其是西方应该心存感激。中国设定了自己的道路和时间表，她不会被媒体所阻碍或挫败。媒体对中国发展的负面报道越多，它就变得越强大。这在很多领域已经被证实了。