Ant Group, the Chinese fintech giant backed by Jack Ma, has announced a significant advancement in artificial intelligence (AI) by developing training techniques that utilize domestically produced semiconductors. This innovation reportedly reduces AI training costs by 20%, marking a pivotal shift in China’s technological landscape amid ongoing international trade restrictions.
Traditionally, training sophisticated AI models has relied heavily on high-performance chips like NVIDIA’s H800. However, U.S. export controls have limited China’s access to such advanced semiconductors. In response, Ant Group employed domestic chips from affiliates such as Alibaba Group and Huawei Technologies to train models using the Mixture of Experts (MoE) machine learning approach. This method divides tasks into smaller data sets, enhancing efficiency and reducing reliance on foreign hardware. The results achieved were comparable to those obtained with NVIDIA’s H800 chips.
Ant Group’s research paper highlights that training one trillion tokens—a fundamental unit of data for AI models—typically costs about 6.35 million yuan (approximately $1.17 million) using high-performance hardware. By adopting their optimized approach with lower-specification hardware, the cost could be reduced to 5.1 million yuan, representing a 20% savings.
This development underscores a broader trend among Chinese tech companies to achieve self-reliance in critical technologies. Entrepreneur Arnaud Bertrand remarked on the significance of this achievement, suggesting that China has effectively countered U.S. semiconductor sanctions.
Ant Group plans to leverage this breakthrough in its large language models, Ling-Plus and Ling-Lite, for applications in sectors such as healthcare and finance. The company has also open-sourced these models, encouraging further innovation and collaboration within the AI community.
In addition to its AI advancements, Ant Group has received approval from the Chinese government to roll out products powered by its large language model, Bailing, to the public. This approval signifies official support for Ant’s AI initiatives and paves the way for broader application of its AI services.
Furthermore, Ant Group has announced plans to increase investments in AI and data technologies over the next decade. The focus will be on areas such as distributed databases, blockchain, privacy computing, and green computing technologies. The company aims to provide AI-powered intelligent services to more enterprises, reinforcing its commitment to technological innovation.
In summary, Ant Group’s recent achievements highlight China’s growing capabilities in AI and semiconductor technologies, reflecting a strategic move towards technological self-sufficiency in the face of global trade challenges.
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