{"id":14348,"date":"2024-07-19T09:39:53","date_gmt":"2024-07-19T09:39:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/?p=14348"},"modified":"2025-04-23T08:58:44","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T08:58:44","slug":"from-ai-to-dna-to-data-china-relaxes-regulations-on-tech-healthcare-and-innovation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focus.cbbc.org\/from-ai-to-dna-to-data-china-relaxes-regulations-on-tech-healthcare-and-innovation\/","title":{"rendered":"From AI to DNA: China Relaxes Regulations On Tech, Healthcare and Innovation"},"content":{"rendered":"

A shift in China\u2019s stance on tech regulation presents a host of new opportunities for UK companies in the tech and healthcare spaces, writes Elinor Greenhouse<\/strong>, Senior Adviser, Tech and Innovation, China-Britain Business Council<\/h2>\n

At the conclusion of the Third Plenum<\/a> in Beijing this week, innovation and the balancing of development and security were set out as some of China\u2019s core strategic priorities. Meanwhile, in Westminster, there has been much speculation over the omission of a dedicated AI bill at the state opening of parliament, despite indications that the draft bill is largely complete. It seems China and the UK are on the same page in this regard as, while the EU AI Act is set to come into force at the start of August, China\u2019s Draft Artificial Intelligence Law has also been pushed further back.<\/p>\n

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Delivering the keynote speech at the China Internet Rule of Law conference last week, Wang Hongyu, Director of China\u2019s Legislative Affairs Committee (LAC), made this clear in confirming that China\u2019s plans for implementing AI regulation are still under development. Comparing the legislative approaches of China, the US and the EU, he contended that, although there are undoubted risks in the early stages of development of AI, an over-emphasis on security hinders development and can lead to a loss of competitive advantage, adding that \u201cnot developing is the greatest risk\u201d.<\/p>\n

This phrase may be familiar to followers of Chinese politics, as it forms an integral part of the logic underpinning tech policy and reform. After what has become known domestically as the \u201ccentury of humiliation<\/a>\u201d, during which China was subject to foreign intervention, annexation and subjugation by a host of industrialised nations, technology and innovation are seen as a cornerstone of national security in modern China. Symbolic of strength, competence and prosperity, they are a key policy priority throughout China\u2019s five-year plans. Innovation is as much a matter of national pride as it is security.<\/p>\n