AI Insights

Opinion | China’s call for global AI governance is loud and clear. Is the US listening?

Published

1 month ago

July 31, 2025

Despite Shanghai’s rainy weather, large crowds flocked to the exhibition, reflecting strong public enthusiasm. But beyond the futuristic gadgets and technical breakthroughs, this year’s conference delivered a deeper message: China’s readiness to play a constructive role in shaping global AI governance.

In his opening address, Premier Li Qiang struck a note of urgency, calling for deeper international cooperation and warning against the risks of fragmented governance in the age of rapidly advancing AI. The conference’s alternative title, “High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance”, was not just symbolic. China recognises the question is no longer whether we can innovate, but whether we can govern wisely.

This stands in stark contrast to the path taken by other powers. Days before the Shanghai event, US President Donald Trump unveiled “America’s AI Action Plan”, doubling down on great-power competition and framing AI supremacy as a matter of national security.

The US intends to outcompete China and preserve American leadership, especially through efforts to “counter Chinese influence in international governance bodies”, offering little in the way of genuine global collaboration or responsible development frameworks that include China.

Indeed, many AI governance initiatives emerging in recent years, such as the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence and AI Partnership for Defence, have been framed around alliances of “like-minded” countries. While these initiatives often speak the language of ethics and responsibility, they also reflect geopolitical fault lines. China is not only rarely invited to the table but is often treated as an imagined rival or a problem to be contained. The result is not global AI governance, but fragmented spheres of trust, each side viewing the other’s intentions with suspicion.

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Get 50 percent off subscriptions

Published

1 hour ago

August 31, 2025

The Editors

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AI converts ASCII game to real-time AI-rendered graphics – Thunder Lizard ASCII visuals transformed, but latency and consistency need improvement

Published

2 hours ago

August 31, 2025

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Software engineer Jeff Schomay has been experimenting with techniques to transform game visuals using artificial intelligence-powered rendering. In a recent blog post, he shared screens from his Thunder Lizard “old-school ASCII RPG style game” and you can see various AI models reconstructing the title’s basic character-based visuals into far plusher full-motion graphics. However, there are quite a few compromises needed to achieve a ‘playable’ 10fps and 1ms latency AI visual enhanced game.

The current game

You can play Thunder Lizard, using the current ASCII rogue-like engine visuals, right now, via that link. In brief, you use the cursor keys to navigate around the prehistoric landscape while attempting to catch and east smaller dinosaurs, while avoiding larger ones. You grow as you eat smaller prey, but you have to flourish enough to become the most powerful dinosaur before the volcano destroys the entire landscape.

Cake and eat it – not possible

As Schomay put it in his blog post, there is a “need for speed” in gaming, that isn’t yet met by many AI renderers. At least concerning what is available to indie devs.

We get to see some fantastic looking prehistoric landscape renderers, which would really add something to Thunder Lizard. However, the software engineer couldn’t coax better than “a four-second latency, it was unplayable” from the most handsome AI game graphics renderer.

Fal.ai. This model beat the other contenders for its “very fast generation times, source image adherence, and decent look and feel,” according to the software engineer.

AI rendered ASCII game in real time – YouTube

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Though what you see is an (AI) engine capable of just 10fps and 1ms latency, it’s the best option, according to Schomay’s efforts, in this case.

Pixel peepers might feel a little let down by the chosen AI visuals, which eventually won out. However, Schomay ends his blog on an upbeat note, stating that “it is amazing to see AI image generation happen in real-time.” He is also excited about the future, but hopes some strides can be made in frame to frame consistency.

We’ve previously reported on the use of AI in developing and enhancing games and graphics. Nvidia shared a lot of RTX technology reliant AI-enhanced development tool information earlier this year.

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