China’s growing AI talent pool competes with tragic loss of key experts

Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a key focal point in the US-China tech rivalry, with Chinese companies like DeepSeek challenging American dominance, even as China's AI sector experiences both rapid growth and the heartbreaking loss of several top experts.

The premature deaths of these experts - due to illness or accidents - have sparked growing concerns about the pressure and risks faced by AI researchers in the country, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

Chinese computer scientist Liu Shaoshan highlighted the intense environment in AI research, noting that while professionals may command high salaries, the pressure to innovate is overwhelming.

"The industry is developing too fast and the competition is very fierce," Liu said, adding that a new idea might be overtaken by another researcher’s publication before it even gets fully explored. 

Liu also pointed to the moral burden AI researchers bear as the technology increasingly impacts society: “AI can also have a big impact on society as its use spreads, and this unknown potential for a huge change in society can also put them under very high moral pressure.”

Several key AI figures have tragically passed away during their peak years. Sun Jian, a renowned computer vision expert, died in June 2022 at 45. He was the chief scientist at Megvii Technology, where he led the development of major AI platforms like ShuffleNet. 

Feng Yanghe, an expert in military AI, died in 2023 at 38 while heading to a mission. Tang Xiaoou, founder of SenseTime and a pioneer in computer vision, passed away in 2023 at 55. He Zhi, co-founder of Yidu Tech, tragically died in 2024 at 41. Quan Yuhui, a rising star in computer image processing, died in January 2025 at just 39. These untimely losses underscore the harsh realities faced by the rapidly growing AI sector in China.

By Naila Huseynova