Artificial intelligence in Europe: do not miss the boat again

Lagging behind China and the US, the EU needs to work on talent retention and early-stage funding, write Terence Tse, Luca Cartechini and Mark Esposito

 
A recent survey of 3,000 managers finds that 57% of their companies are piloting or deploying artificial intelligence. Also, 59% claim to have an artificial intelligence (AI) strategy and 70% that they understand how AI can generate business value. But where do these AI technologies come from? The answers, as many would have guessed, are China and the US.

Chinese companies have close to 110,000 AI patents, whilst the US boasts of having over 60,000. Europe, in contrast, has just a little over 5,000 patents. Such a lag has prompted the European Commission recently to launch the plan Shaping Europe’s Digital Future: Strategies for Data and AI, seeking to close the gap and to provide a potential future direction of AI development for the member states.

There are several factors holding Europe back. First up is talent. It is not just a matter of recruitment but also retention, with many European companies losing their most skilful AI talent to overseas competitors. Another reason is regulation, which poses a conundrum in the continent. Whilst some observers believe that it is critical for the field of AI to be properly regulated, others worry that heavy or strict regulations could seriously constrain developments.

Συνέχεια ανάγνωσης εδώ

Πηγή: blogs.lse.ac.uk