Kai-Fu Lee, the founder Sinovation Ventures (start-up incubators) and former executive at Google, shared in an interview with CGTN, shared his views on how AI can lead to monopolies. “If you have more data, you can create a better product, and hire more people. That (loop) can lead to more monopolies. What is important for governments and enterprises are that we enable competition. Only when there are hundreds of companies in AI, then consumers will gain most benefits”

Kai-Fu Lee, the founder Sinovation Ventures on AI, jobs and what governments & enterprises should be focusing on

One of the biggest challenges for companies to hire more AI professionals is the huge demand and supply gap and how that is driving salary hikes in this segment of talent. Bloomberg reported that salaries for AI talent have grown multifold as the supply and demand get wider and wider.  A fresh Ph.D is today earning upwards of $300,000. Salaries at DeepMind, an AI company owned by Alphabet Inc., averaged $345,000 in 2016, according to U.K. regulatory filings.

That will necessitate HR to be more flexible on salary scales and break internal equity.  “Don’t let HR tell you” the company can’t afford the salaries, said Lee. “Google is paying a million dollars for these superstars. You may not need someone that high but you’ve got to break the scale for at least one person,” he said.

While the problem is not only in hiring, it is also in integrating such talent into organizations. Companies and governments are falling behind the AI race as it poses a threat of affordability. Can you really miss out and take on the threat of becoming irrelevant?