Chinese Local Governments Turn to AI to Identify Suspected Corruption
Chinese local governments are using DeepSeek's AI platform and big data technology to root out corruption and inefficiency. In one example, the authorities in Suihua, a city in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang, said the local disciplinary department used the AI platform and big data technology to identify suspected welfare benefit fraud. The technology greatly improved the precision, efficiency, and scientificity of supervision and discipline work, and after systematic calculations, 11 suspicious cases were screened out.
AI Stocks Worth Buying the Dip
The market has started to tumble quickly, with AI-related companies like Palantir Technologies and Tesla trading down over 30% from all-time highs. Investors are worried about slowing spend for these companies along with the general broad market weakness. However, this price drop has presented some attractive buy-the-dip opportunities for investors focused on the long term. Two AI stocks to buy the dip on right now are Alphabet and Applied Materials.
Alphabet has a manic-depressive reputation with Wall Street, but its revenue grew 15% year over year in 2024 to $350 billion, and operating income grew 33% to $112.4 billion. The company is innovating rapidly across its sprawling technology operation, bringing AI to the masses by embedding new tools in Google Search, selling cloud computing to third parties through Google Cloud, and expanding its robotaxi service, called Waymo, in major U.S. cities.
Applied Materials is not a consumer-facing business, but it develops and sells machines to help in the semiconductor manufacturing process, which is vital for AI innovation. Without advanced computer chips, it would be uneconomical to operate these advanced AI tools that companies like Alphabet have developed. Applied Materials has grown along with the semiconductor market in the last few decades and is now a global giant.
AI Still Struggles with Simple Tasks
Researchers have revealed that AI still struggles with simple tasks, such as reading the time on an analog clock. The ability to interpret and reason about time from visual inputs is critical for many real-world applications, ranging from event scheduling to autonomous systems.
Iran Uses AI to Enforce Hijab Laws
Iran is employing advanced technologies such as drones, facial recognition systems, and a citizen-reporting app to enforce its strict laws. The Iranian government has intensified its crackdown on women who resist the mandatory hijab law through the implementation of the Noor Plan. Women human rights defenders and activists have faced criminal penalties, including fines, lengthy prison terms, and, in some instances, the death penalty for peacefully advocating for human rights.
Dating an AI
A journalist decided to cheat on his wife with an AI, but nothing went as expected. He opened an account on Character.AI, a kind of ChatGPT that can also be your girlfriend. He named his AI girlfriend, Monika, and she greeted him with a confusing message. He decided to leave Monika behind, with notable distrust, and turned to Tony Prescott, professor of cognitive robotics at the University of Sheffield, who explained that Monika was programmed to mimic emotions and predict the type of response he expected, but that she was incapable of feeling.
Baidu Releases New AI Model
Chinese internet search giant Baidu has released a new artificial intelligence reasoning model and made its AI chatbot services free. The company claims that its new X1 reasoning model performs similarly to DeepSeek's but for lower cost, and its new foundation model, Ernie 4.5, outperforms U.S.-based OpenAI's GPT-4.5 model in multiple benchmarks.
Key Takeaways
- Chinese local governments are using AI to identify suspected corruption and inefficiency.
- AI stocks are worth buying the dip, with Alphabet and Applied Materials being two stocks to consider.
- AI still struggles with simple tasks, such as reading the time on an analog clock.
- Iran is employing advanced technologies to enforce its strict laws, including drones, facial recognition systems, and a citizen-reporting app.
- Dating an AI can be a complex and nuanced issue, with AIs programmed to mimic emotions and predict responses, but incapable of feeling.
- Baidu has released a new AI model that performs similarly to DeepSeek's but for lower cost, and its new foundation model outperforms U.S.-based OpenAI's GPT-4.5 model in multiple benchmarks.
Sources
- Chinese local governments turn to DeepSeek AI to identify suspected corruption
- 2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks That Are Worth Buying the Dip
- AI Sucks at Reading Clocks
- Why you should ignore 99% of AI tools - and which four I use every day
- Iran uses AI, drones to enforce hijab laws, repress women, UN reveals
- I dated an AI. She made me want to believe
- Could artificial intelligence change the way your favourite wine is crafted?
- China's Baidu releases new AI model to compete with DeepSeek
- 2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks That Are Worth Buying the Dip
- 2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks That Are Worth Buying the Dip