China boycotts global AI conference following restrictions from US-sanctioned research entities

The Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems ( NeurIPS), a premier global AI gathering, updated its rules to stop accepting research submissions from entities currently under US sanctions. This move effectively bans major Chinese technology firms like Huawei and SMIC from participating in the peer-review process and presenting breakthroughs. NeurIPS stated the change was necessary to comply with United States federal laws and trade regulations. 

In response, the nation’s largest professional science federation, China Association for Science and Technology, the nation’s largest professional association, announced a formal boycott of the conference on Friday, March 27. Consequently, research papers accepted at NeurIPS will no longer be recognized as qualifying research outputs for CAST’s various funding and talent programs.

CAST is redirecting researchers toward domestic forums or international conferences that respect the rights and interests of Chinese academics. The conflict illustrates how state power is being used to influence frontier technology. While the US uses sanctions to limit China’s access to tech and forums, China is using regulatory measures to protect its homegrown talent and intellectual property. 

The US has intensified investigations into Chinese scientists at American universities over alleged ties to mainland entities. Chinese regulators recently barred two executives from the AI startup Manus from leaving the country; the travel ban is part of a review into Meta Platforms’ $2 billion acquisition of the firm. Regulators are investigating if the deal-which involved relocating the team to Singapore-violated Chinese investment technology, export, or national security rules.