China is now home to the most valuable AI startup in the world

SenseTime Group Limited just raised $600 million from a group of investors including Alibaba, which takes its total valuation to over $3 billion, making it the most valuable artificial intelligence startup on the planet, reports Bloomberg. SenseTime’s specialty is building AI that recognizes images and faces on a massive scale. In fact, Bloomberg says if you’ve ever walked down a street in China or had your picture taken by a Chinese-made phone, your face has likely already been scanned and categorized by SenseTime’s AI. China takes artificial intelligence extremely seriously, believing it will give the country an edge in everything from the military to economics in the future. China has previously said it plans to become the leader in AI by 2030. Having the most valuable AI startup in the world sounds like the country is off to a good start.