CHINA TO USE AI IN EDUCATION
China will integrate artificial intelligence (AI) applications into primary, secondary and university level education, according to an official announcement from the Ministry of Education. AI technology will be incorporated into textbooks and instruction to help "cultivate the basic abilities of teachers and students" and shape the "core competitiveness of innovative talents." Educators will be encouraged to use AI to create more innovative and challenging assignments that improve students' "independent thinking and problem-solving to communication and cooperation," it said. (Reuters, April 17, 2025)
UKRAINE BANS PRC FIRMS SUPPLYING RUSSIA WITH MISSILES
Ukraine has sanctioned three PRC companies — Beijing Aviation and Aerospace Xianghui Technology Co. Ltd, Rui Jin Machinery Co. Ltd, and Zhongfu Shenying Carbon Fiber Xining Co. Ltd — involved in manufacturing advanced Iskander missiles for Russia. The Chinese companies, which are banned from doing business in Ukraine, were supplying the Russian military with artillery, gunpowder, and the nuclear-capable short-range ballistic missile system, which Russia uses to attack Ukrainian cities. (Reuters, April 18, 2025)
RFA HALTS RADIO TRANSMISSIONS IN MANDARIN AND TIBETAN
After the U.S. Agency for Global Media abruptly terminated its federal grant on March 15, Radio Free Asia (RFA) radio broadcasts were slashed from 63 hours in March to seven hours and most of its staff have been furloughed. RFA transmissions have been halted from relay stations owned or leased by the U.S. government and Mandarin, Tibetan and Lao language shortwave radio broadcasts have stopped entirely. The broadcaster, which is funded by the U.S. Congress, has also significantly reduced its Burmese, Khmer, Korean and Uyghur language services. The Trump administration has also slashed other news organizations funded by the Congress, including the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. (Radio Free Asia, April 4, 2025)
CHINA IS USING GENERATIVE AI TO RAMP UP DISINFORMATION IN TAIWAN
China is using generative AI as part of "cognitive warfare... designed to create divisions among our society," Taiwan's National Security Bureau told its parliament. So far this year, the bureau has detected more than half a million "controversial messages" on social media platforms like Facebook and TikTok intended to "divide" Taiwanese public opinion. PRC disinformation campaigns in Taiwan have been timed for sensitive moments such as President Lai Ching-te's speech on China last month or chipmaker TSMC's announcement of new U.S. investment. "The CCP has been using AI tools to assist in the generation and dissemination of controversial messages," the report said. Meanwhile, China has also ramped up its grey zone tactics against Taiwan, with a sharp increase in the number of PLA coast guard incursions and balloons in Taiwan's waters and airspace, which, in turn, force Taipei to deploy its own military forces and deplete its limited resources. (Straits Times, April 8, 2025)
WHITE HOUSE BACKS OFF NVIDIA'S H20 CHIP CRACKDOWN
Just before they were set to be announced, the Trump administration decided not to place export controls on the H20 — the most cutting-edge AI chip that U.S. companies can still sell to China. Lawmakers including Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) have called on Trump to curb sales of the chip, but those plans evaporated after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang attended a $1 million-a-head dinner at Mar-a-Lago last week and promised new investments in U.S. AI data centers. The White House's change of course, which will allow Chinese firms to continue to purchase H20 chips, is a major victory for Beijing. "China still can't produce the volume of chips it needs domestically, so it is critically reliant on imports of Nvidia chips," said Chris Miller of Tufts University. (NPR, April 9, 2025)
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