The urgency of naming an A.I. czar is underscored by escalating competition with China, which has outlined ambitious plans to dominate the global A.I. sector by 2030 and poured resources into innovation and infrastructure.

Dozens of yellow and red robotic arms move swiftly and silently as they assemble the latest range of Tesla electric cars.A white sheet of spray paint is then applied before the vehicles move to the final stage of manufacturing ready to be rolled out of Elon Musk’s gigafactory in Shanghai.