Discussions about how to use artificial intelligence (AI) to optimize factory productivity, manage traffic flow and in healthcare abound in Taiwan, given the nation’s importance in the field of technology. The topic of AI’s use in the creation of art has not yet been fully fleshed out in Taiwan, although the subject has been hotly debated globally due to concerns about copyrights, loss of creative control and misinformation.
An award-winning artwork by a Fu-Hsin Trade and Art School student last week prompted discussions on social media about whether it was generated by AI and on how the school handled the issue. A student from the school blew the whistle on the creator, saying that AI had been used to produce the vivid image of the mythical Chinese Monkey King. The image won the first prize in the digital drawing category of an art contest organized by the school to celebrate its 67th anniversary.
Fu-Hsin initially ignored the allegation and said the whistle-blower intended to taint the school’s reputation. However, painters and experts in AI-related fields have provided evidence on the painting’s composition and its misuse of perspective. The school revoked the prize after the student admitted to “accidentally” using AI in the process of producing the image, the school said in a statement on Facebook.
It is unimaginable that Fu-Hsin, a prestigious art school that is considered a cradle of art in Taiwan, would make such a mistake.
The creator of the painting apologized for contravening school rules, the statement said. Based on Fu-Hsin’s rules, students are required to sign an affidavit swearing that they have not used AI tools to create their works. The school did not apologize for its neglect in failing to detect the use of AI, but asked social media users to behave properly.
This incident highlighted that most Taiwanese schools, and art schools in particular, are not ready to embrace the AI era. They are struggling to cope with the rapid proliferation of AI applications. They cannot even solve the question of how to discern works generated by AI from those created by humans. Average social media users and painters easily got a sense that the winning image might have been generated by AI, but art experts such as the school’s instructors did not notice anything unusual.
Fu-Hsin’s case offers a glimpse into a society facing growing challenges related to AI. The rise of AI is dramatically changing all aspects of people’s lives. It does not make sense to forbid people from using it to generate text, images or videos. That would only limit creativity and hamper the development of all industries. Instead, people should discuss how best to regulate the use of AI and how to use it appropriately — as a tool or a paintbrush to create art or improve people’s lives, rather than a mastermind of algorithms or a generator of misinformation.
Earlier this year, the EU approved its AI Act, the first of its kind in the world, with the aim of providing AI developers and deployers with clear requirements and obligations regarding specific uses of AI. The measures would guarantee the safety and fundamental rights of people and businesses when it comes to AI, the EU said.
Taiwan began the process of formulating similar AI rules last year, but no details have been finalized. The nation needs to hurry up and finalize AI regulations to protect people’s privacy, security and rights.
The US Senate’s passage of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which urges Taiwan’s inclusion in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise and allocates US$1 billion in military aid, marks yet another milestone in Washington’s growing support for Taipei. On paper, it reflects the steadiness of US commitment, but beneath this show of solidarity lies contradiction. While the US Congress builds a stable, bipartisan architecture of deterrence, US President Donald Trump repeatedly undercuts it through erratic decisions and transactional diplomacy. This dissonance not only weakens the US’ credibility abroad — it also fractures public trust within Taiwan. For decades,
In 1976, the Gang of Four was ousted. The Gang of Four was a leftist political group comprising Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members: Jiang Qing (江青), its leading figure and Mao Zedong’s (毛澤東) last wife; Zhang Chunqiao (張春橋); Yao Wenyuan (姚文元); and Wang Hongwen (王洪文). The four wielded supreme power during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), but when Mao died, they were overthrown and charged with crimes against China in what was in essence a political coup of the right against the left. The same type of thing might be happening again as the CCP has expelled nine top generals. Rather than a
Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmaker Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) on Saturday won the party’s chairperson election with 65,122 votes, or 50.15 percent of the votes, becoming the second woman in the seat and the first to have switched allegiance from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to the KMT. Cheng, running for the top KMT position for the first time, had been termed a “dark horse,” while the biggest contender was former Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌), considered by many to represent the party’s establishment elite. Hau also has substantial experience in government and in the KMT. Cheng joined the Wild Lily Student
Taipei stands as one of the safest capital cities the world. Taiwan has exceptionally low crime rates — lower than many European nations — and is one of Asia’s leading democracies, respected for its rule of law and commitment to human rights. It is among the few Asian countries to have given legal effect to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant of Social Economic and Cultural Rights. Yet Taiwan continues to uphold the death penalty. This year, the government has taken a number of regressive steps: Executions have resumed, proposals for harsher prison sentences
RSS