Call for Pitches: DigiChina Special Report on AI Policy in China

DigiChina, a joint project of the Stanford University Program on Geopolitics, Technology and Governance and New America's Cybersecurity Initiative, is seeking pitches for contributions to a special report on the policy implications and development of artificial intelligence in China, to be published Fall 2019.

This report will mark a celebration of the recently announced Stanford-New America collaboration for DigiChina's future.

ELIGIBILITY

Contributions are welcomed from scholars, policy practitioners, private sector specialists, technologists, journalists, and others engaging with questions around AI in China.

DigiChina publishes translations and analysis that engages directly with primary source material, and pitches for the special report should indicate which sources will be used if the piece is selected for editing and publication. Pitches may build on existing translations or include a new translation (or translated excerpts) in the proposal.

SUBJECT MATTER

All pitches are welcome, but DigiChina especially focuses on digital economy policy, data governance, cybersecurity regulations, ethics and governance of new technologies, and official or industry ideology and development efforts.

Contributions might, for instance:

• profile one or more major actor in AI ethics, policy or development;
• analyze Chinese policies requiring platforms to label algorithmically-generated content;
• assess actual outcomes associated with government plans;
• enumerate policy and ethical challenges for foreign companies working in China;
• highlight what Chinese companies are developing at home or abroad;
• describe concrete implications of national or international political winds; etc.

Consider an informed generalist audience, ranging from specialists in Chinese politics to AI ethics scholars, but also including policymakers, journalists, businesspeople, scholars, and other citizens working across the many areas of life where AI and China play a role. Pitches should make clear why they will bring forth deeper understanding of important material.

Pitches should specify planned length between 300 words and 2,000 words, with a general preference for the 800–1,500-word range

CALL FOR CO-EDITOR

Separate from this call for pitches, DigiChina seeks a co-editor of this report, working on a contract basis, to help shape the overall product, work with contributors, and bring a diverse set of perspectives to publication. Those interested should send a resume and cover letter to webster@newamerica.org by August 9.

DEADLINES

Pitches up to 300 words are due August 9 by this form. Accepted pitches will be selected by August 16. Full drafts will be due September 6. Publication will be approximately October 28.

HONORARIA

With the support of the Ethics and Governance of AI Initiative of the Harvard Berkman Klein Center and the MIT Media Lab, DigiChina can offer honoraria of between $150 and $500, depending on the piece.

PUBLICATION

The report will be published in late October, 2019, at a launch event as part of a DigiChina convening at Stanford University focusing on artificial intelligence and digital policy in China.

BACKGROUND

The Stanford-New America DigiChina Project is a collaborative effort to understand China’s digital policy developments, primarily through translating and analyzing Chinese-language sources. How the Chinese state and society deploy and use digital technologies is increasingly consequential for governance, markets, and security around the world. From laws and regulations to published commentaries from policymakers and corporate strategies, China’s public sphere provides a great deal of insight into what’s happening and why. DigiChina contributors, working collaboratively with industry and policy experts around the globe, work innovatively to bring that insight to an international audience and better inform important debates and decisions.

For reference, DigiChina publications on AI so far include:

• Full Translation: China's 'New Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan' (2017)
• China’s Plan to ‘Lead’ in AI: Purpose, Prospects, and Problems
• Translation: Chinese government outlines AI ambitions through 2020
• From Riding a Wave to Full Steam Ahead: As China’s Government Mobilizes for AI Leadership, Some Challenges Will Be Tougher Than Others
• Translation: Excerpts from China’s ‘White Paper on Artificial Intelligence Standardization’
• Chinese Interests Take a Big Seat at the AI Governance Table: Government and Industry Team to Shape Emerging AI Standards-Setting Process
• Xi Jinping Calls for 'Healthy Development' of AI (Translation)
• Read What Top Chinese Officials Are Hearing About AI Competition and Policy
• China's Efforts to Build the Semiconductors at AI's Core
• Online Symposium: Chinese Thinking on AI Security in Comparative Context: Experts place a Chinese think tank's AI Security White Paper in context
• Translation: Key Chinese Think Tank's 'AI Security White Paper' (Excerpts)
• Translation: Chinese Expert Group Offers 'Governance Principles' for 'Responsible AI'
• Translation: Chinese AI Alliance Drafts Self-Discipline 'Joint Pledge'

HOW TO SUBMIT

Pitches should be submitted through this form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc3LJVFCn9LdT3Rh-WG2tYeeus8pLgyBKVzyeqVkGqj3vofog/viewform?usp=sf_link

Questions may be directed to DigiChina Coordinating Editor Graham Webster at webster@newamerica.org.