China's "irreplaceable role" in driving technological development was emphasized by an expert at the 14th Annual Meeting of the New Champions (AMNC) on Tuesday.

Angela Wu, professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, highlighted the significant contributions made by excellent researchers and emerging entrepreneurial companies leveraging these technologies.

The AMNC, also known as "Summer Davos," hosted by the World Economic Forum (WEF), is currently taking place in Tianjin, China, under the theme "Entrepreneurship: The Driving Force of the Global Economy."

During the event, the WEF unveiled its report on the top 10 emerging technologies of 2023, which are anticipated to have substantial social and economic impacts. These technologies were selected after careful consideration and evaluation by academics, industry leaders, and futurists.

According to Wu, these ten technologies, handpicked from a pool of 90 suggested technologies, are deemed transformative and game-changing.

Challenges ahead

While these technological advancements offer immense potential, scientists acknowledge the challenges and concerns associated with privacy, data security, policy-making, and ethics.

Wu specifically highlighted the importance of data accessibility in AI-facilitated healthcare. To make data more accessible, local resources, infrastructure, artificial intelligence and decentralized computing must be leveraged.

Joseph Constantine, professor at the American University of Beirut, emphasized that as data accumulates, privacy and data security concerns will become increasingly prominent.

Speaking of how to find the balance between the opportunities and challenges presented by technologies such as artificial general intelligence (AGI), Constantine suggested that scientists could provide guidance to governments in formulating policies that address public concerns.

He also expressed optimism about AGI's future applications, stating that they will extend beyond tools like ChatGPT to encompass industries such as film and television.