4th Taiwan Tech Summit in Silicon Valley to take place Sept. 20

San Francisco, Aug. 30 (CNA) The fourth annual Taiwan Tech Summit will be held on Sept. 20 in Santa Clara, California, and focus on the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

The summit will gather top AI experts to explore technological developments and how Taiwan can become a key player in the global trend of innovation surrounding AI, the TaiwanNext Foundation said in a recent statement.

The one-day tech summit at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Silicon Valley will have two major forums on AI, including "Sovereign AI" and "AI Application," with the Coalition for the Global Alliances for Taiwan Technology and Diplomacy (GATTD) and Taiwan Data Science Meetup being the respective lead organizers, the foundation said.

"Sovereign AI" is a brand-new concept that has not been clearly defined, GATTD Vice President Hans Wang (王詩翰) said at a recent news conference in San Jose when promoting the summit.

Wang will be joined by Kharis Templeman, a Stanford University lecturer who also works as a research fellow at the Hoover Institution and program manager of the Project on Taiwan in the Indo-Pacific Region. Another panelist is Hoover Fellow Sergey Sanovich, who studies how autocrats use digital tools, including AI, for censorship and propaganda at home and abroad, the foundation said.

They will discuss what "sovereign AI" means, why it has become a top priority for governments amid intensifying global competition, and the challenges of building systems that are both secure and open, the foundation said.

The AI Application forum will be moderated by Sharon Chai, who leads Marketing Technology Data Operations at Uber, and will examine the rapid rise of generative AI and its impact on industries, workflows, and human creativity, the foundation said.

The panelists include Mirror Mirror AI Founder and CEO Yusan Lin, whose San Francisco-based startup applies generative AI to create images catered to different brands, seasoned technology executive Ming T. Lu, and Cheehoo Labs Inc. Chief Product Officer Kuo Wei-cheng.

The summit will also feature career panels for the tech industry and a Taiwan Demo Day where startups can meet potential investors, with the latter organized by the National Development Council's (NDC) Startup Island Taiwan Silicon Valley Hub.

Startup Island Taiwan's Silicon Valley hub was established in January as an incubator for emerging businesses, part of the NDC's plan to transform Taiwan's industries.

The Silicon Valley hub will hold Taiwan Tech Week from Sept. 15-20, to assist startups in securing funding, with the help of local organizations, Taiwan Stock Exchange, and NTU Alumni Ventures, the NDC said in a statement in mid-August.

NTU Alumni Ventures is a venture capital fund that the NDC and National Taiwan University jointly set up in July 2024.