artificial intelligence

artificial-intelligence

Chinese Sites Are Selling Tutorials on How to Use AI to Create Porn

Timely reports on issues and events from across China. Drawing on a vast range of sources, these succinct articles provide insights into the significance of each issue in a wider context.

NEWS

Though AI chatbots and apps are moderated for explicit content, using specific prompts, English, or vague wording allows users to bypass restrictions.

Fan Yiying

China Issues Draft Regulations on AI Copyright Infringement

The draft comes amid growing pressure from the entertainment industry to combat “AI face stealing.”

Chen Yiru

The Enthusiasm and Anxiety Behind China’s OpenClaw Craze

Contributions from individuals with unique perspectives to share. Hear from everyone, from experts and commentators to those whose voices are often marginalized.

VOICES & OPINION

While plenty of Chinese AI users see the new technology as a tool for creativity and convenience, others use it just to not fall behind.

Zhan Beibei

Ten Lives in China’s Age of AI

Articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants.

FEATURES

AI has spread across China with startling speed. Ten people describe what it now allows them to do, what makes them uneasy about it, and what life might look like without it.

Li Xin

China’s Tech Giants Are Recruiting High Schoolers

Citing insufficient talent in universities, tech companies are increasingly seeking out high schoolers to fulfill research and internship roles.

Jiang Xinyi

Yang Yang

Shanghai Concludes Its First AI-Assisted Surgical Training Program

Doctors can choose between two training pathways to obtain AI-assisted surgery certification, granting them permission to provide cutting-edge surgeries going forward.

Controversy Erupts Over Chinese AI Actors in Upcoming Short Drama

The announcement has sparked debate on social media about the AI performers’ resemblance to real actors, as well as the potential impact on industry jobs.

‘GEO’ Services Are Flooding the Chinese Internet With Misinformation

Highly lucrative services offering generative engine optimization, initially conceived of as a way to improve search results, have been called out for “poisoning” AI models with misinformation.

Love in the Time of Algorithms: What Chatbot Romances Reveal About Connection

When OpenAI announced that it would retire its ChatGPT model GPT-4o, it sent shockwaves across the internet and an outpouring of grief. Yet the real question is: What void was 4o filling to begin with?

Gong Xin

Chinese University Cuts Arts Majors, Citing an AI-Driven Future

An explanation from the university’s top official led to debate on social media. But students say they’re not surprised by the cancellation.

If AI’s Native Language Is English, Where Does That Leave China?

Because most high-quality texts are written in English, AI models perform best in that language. Can languages like Chinese ever catch up?

Wesley Wu-Yi Koo

Technical Debt Collectors: China’s Coders Count Cost of AI Errors

Translations, cross-publications, and collaborative projects from Sixth Tone’s external partners. 

SIXTH TONE ×

AI tools have reduced the opportunities for human programmers, so why are they busier than ever?

Oscar Wu

‘Raising Lobsters’: How OpenClaw Became China’s Hottest AI

The agent, which operates as an autonomous personal manager rather than a query-and-response platform, represents a key advance in the field. But barriers to entry and security risks are steep.

Young Chinese Are Asking AI for Fashion Advice, and Going Viral

Users are asking the Doubao chatbot for outfit advice in real time, then filming themselves following its bizarre suggestions.

China’s DeepRare AI Aims to Speed Rare Disease Diagnosis

A new study published in Nature found that the system provides traceable diagnostic reasoning and improves accuracy without relying on genetic data.

Viral Deepfake Demo Prompts ByteDance to Limit New AI Video Tool

A popular tech influencer and content creator described the video generation tool as ‘terrifying.’

He Qitong

‘Better Than Gold’: China’s Traders Cash in as Memory Chip Prices Soar

AI demand is tightening memory supply and driving sharp price swings, creating windfalls for traders while forcing China’s tech firms into an increasingly volatile market.

‘So Tired I Want to Cry’: China’s AI Subsidy War Swamps Shops

AI-driven Chinese New Year giveaways triggered a surge of instant drink orders, leaving shops and delivery riders scrambling to keep up.

AI Developer Not Liable for Hallucination Errors: Chinese Court

The decision finds developers are not automatically responsible for AI hallucinations unless users can show fault and harm.

China Drafts Rules to Regulate AI ‘Boyfriends’ and ‘Girlfriends’

The proposal would require platforms to monitor suicide risk, protect minors, restrict harmful content, and trigger human intervention in cases of distress.