China has unveiled its latest innovation in the world of technology: openKylin, an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven desktop operating system (OS) designed to enhance productivity and promote technological self-sufficiency. This home-grown open-source OS aims to reduce China’s reliance on foreign systems amidst the global AI boom.
The newly launched version of openKylin, specifically designed for AI personal computers (PCs), boasts deep integration with AI technology. It supports on-device large language models (LLMs) and features an AI assistant and text-to-image generation capabilities. The development community behind openKylin described AI as bringing new challenges and opportunities to infrastructure software.
The primary objective of openKylin for AIPC is to significantly improve work efficiency and creative experiences for users of home-grown operating systems. The state-run newspaper Science and Technology Daily hailed the AI version of openKylin as “secure, stable, and controllable.”
The original version of openKylin was introduced in 2022, following decades of efforts in China to cultivate a domestic alternative to Microsoft Windows and Apple’s macOS. Escalating trade tensions between the United States and China have only intensified Beijing’s drive for technological self-sufficiency. In response, the Chinese government has made a concentrated effort to reduce dependence on Windows and foreign chips, such as those produced by Intel.
It is worth noting that many sensitive government initiatives in China run on systems based on Kylin, the closed-source version of openKylin, the core of which is treated as a state secret. The open-source code community responsible for openKylin was launched jointly by Kylinsoft, the maker of Linux-based Kylin, and more than ten other Chinese entities, including the National Industrial Information Security Development Research Centre. In July of last year, the community released openKylin 1.0, which was developed by 3,876 developers with contributions from 271 companies. However, home-grown operating systems have struggled to make significant headway over the years. According to data analytics firm StatCounter, Windows still commands nearly 80% of the Chinese market as of June this year.
Nonetheless, openKylin is optimistic about riding the industry-wide trend of AI PCs. These are computers equipped with processors capable of running generative AI tasks locally, rather than relying on cloud processing. The hope is that AI applications will rejuvenate demand for PCs. This race to introduce AI PCs to the market has escalated, with Microsoft’s announcement of Copilot+ PCs, which run the company’s own Copilot generative AI software and require a neural processing unit capable of handling at least 40 trillion operations per second.
Luca Rossi, an executive vice-president at Lenovo Group, which manufactures Copilot+ PCs, believes that China will be a unique market for AI PCs due to its data localization requirements. In addition, Chinese AI PCs will have to rely on domestic LLMs since popular foreign generative AI services, such as Copilot and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, are absent.
OpenKylin’s foray into the world of AI-driven desktop operating systems marks a significant step in China’s quest for technological self-sufficiency. With its deep integration of AI technology and a range of features aimed at enhancing productivity, openKylin hopes to capture a significant share of the market and establish itself as a secure and stable alternative to foreign systems.
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