China's Xi Urges Countries Unite in Tackling AI Challenges

FILE PHOTO: Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a ceremony to welcome participants of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 17, 2023. Sputnik/Sergei Savostyanov/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a ceremony to welcome participants of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 17, 2023. Sputnik/Sergei Savostyanov/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
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China's Xi Urges Countries Unite in Tackling AI Challenges

FILE PHOTO: Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a ceremony to welcome participants of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 17, 2023. Sputnik/Sergei Savostyanov/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a ceremony to welcome participants of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 17, 2023. Sputnik/Sergei Savostyanov/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Chinese President Xi Jinping said Wednesday that potential risks associated with artificial intelligence are challenges that countries should deal with together.

Xi’s prerecorded speech was broadcast at the opening of the World Internet Conference Summit in the eastern city of Wuzhen.

He called for common security in cyberspace instead of confrontation. He said China would work with other countries to address risks brought by the development of AI and expressed his objections to “cyberspace hegemony.”

China is ready to “promote the safe development of AI,” he said, with the implementation of the Global AI Governance Initiative, a proposal launched by the Chinese government last month calling for an open and fair environment for AI development.

Li Shulei, director of the Communist Party’s publicity department, echoed Xi’s remarks at the conference, saying China would work with other countries to “improve the safety, reliability, controllability and fairness of artificial intelligence technology.”



Small Plane Crashes into Brazil Tourist City, Killing at Least 10

A general view shows the site of a plane crash in the center of Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil December 22, 2024. REUTERS/Edson Vara
A general view shows the site of a plane crash in the center of Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil December 22, 2024. REUTERS/Edson Vara
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Small Plane Crashes into Brazil Tourist City, Killing at Least 10

A general view shows the site of a plane crash in the center of Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil December 22, 2024. REUTERS/Edson Vara
A general view shows the site of a plane crash in the center of Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil December 22, 2024. REUTERS/Edson Vara

A small plane carrying 10 people crashed into shops in the center of the tourist city of Gramado in southern Brazil on Sunday, killing everyone on board, state government officials said.
The aircraft's owner and pilot, Luiz Claudio Galeazzi, died along with the other nine passengers, all of whom were members of his family, according to Rio Grande do Sul Governor Eduardo Leite.
In addition, 17 people on the ground were injured, Leite said at a press conference, with 12 still receiving hospital care, including two in critical condition, Reuters reported.
Manufactured in 1990, the twin-engine Piper PA-42-1000 took off shortly after 9 am local time from nearby Canela airport and was heading to Jundiai in Sao Paulo state under unfavorable weather conditions, the governor said.
He noted that the cause of the crash is being investigated by the Aeronautical Accident Investigation and Prevention Center (Cenipa).
The plane reportedly first struck the chimney of a building then the second floor of a house before crashing into a furniture store, authorities said. Debris also reached a nearby inn.
Nestled in a mountainous region, Gramado is the most popular tourist destination in Rio Grande do Sul, which was severely impacted earlier this year by unprecedented floods that claimed dozens of lives, destroyed infrastructure and significantly disrupted the state's economy.