One-week countdown to WAIC 2023 in Shanghai

The World Artificial Intelligence Conference, or WAIC, will open next week in Shanghai, with spotlights on various large models, robots and AI governance, city officials said on Thursday.

The number of the WAIC 2023's exhibition spaces and speakers both hit record highs, since China's top-level AI conference was held for the first time in 2018, city officials told a press conference on Thursday.

The WAIC 2023 will take place at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center from July 6 to 8, with sub-conferences held in Zhangjiang in the Pudong New Area and Xuhui District.

More than 1,400 speakers and guests will attend the WAIC forums, including researchers, business and organization executives. Eighty academics and Turing Award winners will attend the event. About 50 top executives, from firms including Tesla, Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Huawei and Alibaba, have confirmed to attend the WAIC.

More than 400 firms, including over 50 startups, will attend the WAIC exhibition, which covers more than 50,000 square meters this year. More than 30 products or services will make their debuts in the show.

The show covers the four themes of core technology, intelligent terminals, application enablement and trending innovations, with applications such as large models, chips, robotics, intelligent driving and other fields.

AI large models, encompassing text, vision and other multi-model sectors, are expected to be a hit at the WAIC. AI governance, such as how to better use AIGC (AI-generated content) apps like ChatGPT, will also be fully discussed, city officials and organizers said.