AI Pioneer Song-chun Zhu Returns to China to Lead Small-Data AGI Push
Song‑chun Zhu, a leading AI scientist who spent 28 years in the US, moved to Beijing in 2020 to pursue a different path to artificial general intelligence. Rejecting big‑data, neural‑network orthodoxy, he now leads Beijing’s BigAI institute developing “small‑data, big‑task” cognitive architectures (eg. virtual child TongTong). His return highlights a broader talent shift driven by US political tensions, Chinese resources and strategic ambitions — raising debate over research independence and geopolitical risk.