It’s widely considered to be one of world’s most advanced and futuristic cities. In Shenzen, people can pay for things with the palms of their hands. Take-aways are delivered by drones, driverless taxis shuttle travellers to their destinations and hotels are cleaned by ’service robots’. Here, a network of extensive surveillance cameras not only records people’s movements, they are capable of analysing behaviours and immediately signalling anything suspicious to the police. According to official figures, crimes in public spaces fell 80% in the first 15 years following the cameras installations. But this omnipresent technology has also enabled the Chinese authorities to consolidate their power, making public dissent virtually impossible.
More than any other city, Shenzhen embodies the Chinese dream. It’s here that technological giant, Tencent, and its social media platform, WeChat, are based. More than just a social network, WeChat is used for everything from booking hospital appointments and train tickets, taking out bank loans and buying food. It has over a billion users. But post anything even mildly critical and you may find your account blocked. According to former journalist Rose Luqiu, an expert in Chinese censorship, “technology is increasing so rapidly. Even when you’re using a photo format, they can detect the content.”
On the streets, fully autonomous police robots track down wanted people by scanning the faces of passers-by. Everyone seems to accept them. And for those who don’t mind living in an ultra-surveilled society, the possibilities are endless. Evan Lee is a global manufacturer of extremely realistic sex dolls. Today he’s meeting an AI engineer who has promised to give his dolls a new skill: the ability to flirt and talk dirty. “The voice is adjustable, the degree of sensuality and the emotions can be adjusted … it’s just a matter of cost.” Meanwhile Honglin is designing ’emotional robots’ (in the form of cats) to help comfort older people. Honglin and his girlfriend, also an engineer, form part of Shenzhen’s privileged youth. Thanks to their tech jobs, their salaries are more than three times higher than the average here.
Developing artificial intelligence is one of China’s political priorities. Mr Fan heads the Shenzen Artificial Intelligence Industry Association and shares the authorities’ ambition to make China the world leader in new technologies by 2030. “The development of artificial intelligence is the fourth industrial revolution. It’s a unique opportunity to be grasped. And I’m extremely proud of the Chinese government’s involvement in a place like Shenzhen.”
In Singapore everything is under control. There are countless restrictive rules: chewing gum, smoking in the street, jaywalking, throwing paper on the ground, talking on the subway or even walking around naked are all forbidden.
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