Sberbank, Russia’s largest financial institution, has been told to work with China on the development of AI-based services.
According to Russian state news agency TASS, President Putin has ordered the government and Sberbank to "ensure further co-operation with the People's Republic of China in technological research and development in the field of artificial intelligence".
The move comes amid ongoing sanctions from Western countries over Russia’s war with Ukraine. The world’s major producers of microchips have halted any exports to Russia.
In early December, Putin announced that Russia would be teaming up with BRICS partners, which includes China, to develop an AI Alliance Network to challenge the dominance of the US and other Western countries.
Back in 2023, Sberbank’s CEO German Gref conceded that the bank was struggling to replace graphic processing units which are essential for the development of AI technology.
It is not the first time that Putin has turned to his BRICS partners in a bid to develop alternatives to Western banking initiatives. In October, Russia called for an alternative to international payment system Swift.