Technology Gap Narrowed to Nanoseconds, US Feels the Pressure

The artificial intelligence (AI) hegemony competition between the United States and China has entered a new phase. As Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, remarked that "China has caught up to the US by nanoseconds," the technology gap has narrowed to the point where both nations are staking everything on massive national-level AI infrastructure development.

Donald Trump, the US President, signed an executive order on November 24, 2024, for the Genesis Mission, dubbed the "AI Manhattan Project." Much like the Manhattan Project of 1939, which emerged during World War II's nuclear arms race with Germany, the Genesis Mission represents a strategy to mobilize all of America's AI capabilities to maintain dominance in the AI leadership race against China.

China responded immediately. On December 23, 2024, it announced the official launch of an autonomous AI system called the Super AI System (or AI Scientific Research Platform). With the Central Science and Technology Commission, led by President Xi Jinping, taking direct management and supervision, the initiative secured powerful national-level momentum.

Genesis Mission: Total Mobilization of Federal Resources

The core of the Genesis Mission is the full opening of supercomputers at 17 national laboratories under the Department of Energy and all federal government data resources to industry-academia-research AI development. Like the Apollo Project of the 1960s, which began with the Cold War space race against the Soviet Union for moon landing, the US administration stated that all federal scientific and industrial resource infrastructure will be integrated.

Naming it 'Genesis'—meaning the first chapter of the Bible—carries the significance of being the starting point and turning point for US AI hegemony leadership. With 24 major US tech companies including Google, OpenAI, and Nvidia participating, the project is progressing with momentum. Amazon has already committed a $50 billion investment in US AI supercomputer infrastructure projects.

China's Counter-Response: Autonomous AI System

China's Super AI System is based on the National Supercomputing Network (SCNet) launched in 2023. It is an autonomous system capable of independently performing complex research task decomposition, simulation execution, and data analysis with simple natural language commands, even producing scientific reports.

Particularly noteworthy is the management and supervisory organization. The Central Science and Technology Commission is the Communist Party's highest decision-making body, created in March 2023 to counter US technology sanctions against China, and oversees China's science and technology strategy. Chinese tech giants like Huawei and Baidu are actively participating, and under the leadership of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), over 1,000 industry-academia-research organizations are already utilizing this system.

China has also presented a specific roadmap. The goal is to expand autonomous AI utilization to 70% of all industries by 2027 and 90% by 2030. The strategy is to designate semiconductors and AI as national security industries and internalize science, technology, and advanced manufacturing technologies by integrating AI technology into various advanced processes based on a massive domestic market.

Generative AI vs Physical AI: Shifting Competitive Landscape

The evolution of the AI industry is changing the landscape of US-China AI hegemony competition. While the generative AI era of reasoning and judgment was led by the US, the Physical AI era—which interacts with the physical world and expands into other industrial sectors—is being rapidly dominated by China.

China's strategy is clear: beyond competing in generative AI with the US, it aims to surpass America in the physical AI domain based on superior manufacturing capabilities and vast data. By integrating AI across key industries including semiconductors, biopharmaceuticals, energy, quantum technology, manufacturing, and materials, China is accelerating its 'technological rise' (科技崛起).

The Significance of Designating Semiconductors and AI as National Security Industries

China's designation of semiconductors and AI as national security industries is not simply an industrial policy. It is central to a 'self-sufficiency' strategy to develop advanced industries with domestic technology while countering US technology sanctions.

The Genesis Mission, too, ostensibly promotes scientific AI leadership, but its real goal is to widen the technology gap and outpace China's pursuit in key industries such as semiconductors, biopharmaceuticals, energy, quantum technology, manufacturing, and materials. The US must suppress China's advancing high-tech growth, while China challenges global hegemony with AI-based advanced technology.

The Hidden Real Objective: Military Strengthening [AI Analysis]

While the AI platform competition between the US and China is packaged as a battle for science and technology leadership, the substantial objective is strengthening advanced military capabilities.

Just as the Manhattan Project and Apollo Project both began with military and security motivations, the Genesis Mission's hidden intent is to suppress China's military buildup. China is no different. The fact that the Central Science and Technology Commission oversees management suggests that AI-based advanced military technology development is the top priority.

AI has already established itself as a core technology in the military sector. It is being utilized comprehensively in autonomous weapon systems, cyber warfare, intelligence analysis, and simulations. The US seeks to maintain and expand its existing military advantage, while China's strategy is to rapidly narrow the military gap through AI.

The competition between the US Genesis Mission and China's Super AI System is likely to intensify further. Both systems are being built as national-level total mobilization efforts, and with full participation of big tech companies, the boundary between civilian and military technology is dissolving.

Particularly as China rapidly catches up in the physical AI domain, US anxiety is expected to grow. Unlike the US, which has a weakened manufacturing base, China possesses vast manufacturing infrastructure and data, allowing it to gain an advantage in physical AI commercialization. This goes beyond mere AI technology competition and is expected to become a key variable that will simultaneously determine future industrial leadership and military hegemony.