Stephen Hawking, the famous British physicist, recently warned that the development of a full-fledge artificial intelligence could result in the end of the human race. Others, such as the engineer Raymond Kurzweil, offer a more optimistic outlook and believe that we will soon be able to download our consciousness onto machines. In his book titled “Le Mythe de la Singularité” (The Myth of Singularity, Seuil, 2017), researcher Jean-Gabriel Ganascia refutes the so-called “Technological Singularity,” a brutal rupture that will supposedly transform humanity. According to him, if there is cause for concern about artificial intelligence, it doesn’t stem from the dangers it allegedly poses to humanity but rather from its current applications in our societies.

The past 2016 saw the happening of the most eye-catching technology breakthrough: The AI robot Alpha Go beat the world champion Lee SeDol with the score of 4:1. This remarkable victory was reckoned as another milestone event of the artificial intelligence industry along its over 60 years of history. Together with the passion also came doubts and concerns: will robots replace human being? Will artificial intelligence ultimately abort the human race?

“Professional people like us are living in a good time,” said Qin Zengchang, Vice Director of Beihang Education and Training Centre at Beihang University. While only 15 years ago, when he was still a postgraduate...

Culture is the essential catalyst of intelligence and an AI without the capability to interact culturally would be nothing more than an academic curiosity. However, culture can not be hand coded into a machine; it...