Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and pandas: together at last in San Francisco?
That’s apparently how Mayor London Breed pitched a diplomatic venture with China that’s set to bring two pandas to the San Francisco Zoo, at a cost of $25 million — though some estimates suggest it could be much more.
In doing so, Breed sought funding from some of the city’s wealthiest tech leaders, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, according to letters obtained by zoo advocate Justin Barker that were published in The Standard on Thursday.
The letters — some of which include personal appeals by the mayor — show Breed soliciting donations from the two executives and describing “cutting-edge” technology the zoo plans to utilize “to revolutionize animal welfare and conservation.”
Both declined to help fund the project, the mayor’s office told The Standard on Thursday.
The letters are part of a wider campaign by the city to raise money for the San Francisco Zoological Society, the nonprofit connected to the zoo, which intends to raise millions of dollars through Big Tech and philanthropic sources to fund the panda project. Apple, Google, Nvidia, and PG&E are among other companies that have been approached. The goal is to bring the pandas to the city next summer or fall.
San Francisco secured the panda deal with the China Wildlife Conservation Association in April, when Breed visited China for a weeklong tourism and cultural exchange tour. The lobbying for the pandas began in November, when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited San Francisco for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference.
Some local leaders, including Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin and Supervisor Dean Preston, have criticized the panda plans over concerns about transparency in fundraising efforts. Supervisors this year approved an exemption allowing city departments to receive unlimited donations for the fundraising effort. The high price for the pandas includes rental fees to China, construction of an enclosure, and the many pounds of bamboo the animals eat daily.
The letters to Altman and Benioff date from June and offer a peek into how the city plans to house the pandas at the zoo in the Outer Sunset neighborhood.
The animals will live in a “smart home” with “advanced, automated control systems,” the letters state, and researchers will use artificial intelligence and machine learning to monitor their behavior to identify stress or health issues. “Once developed by the San Francisco Zoo, these technologies could be used to assist in research monitoring wild Giant Panda populations, further supporting Chinese conservation efforts in the Giant Panda’s natural habitat,” Breed wrote.
In the letter to Benioff, whose company Salesforce is a pillar of the city’s economy as the largest private employer and host of the Dreamforce conference, Breed mentions the CEO’s wife by name.
“I know you and Lynne have already been great benefactors to our Zoo, so I know you know what great work they do and how much joy they bring to San Franciscans and visitors alike,” Breed wrote.
She also offered Benioff and Altman the chance to help with the naming process.
“Maybe we could even talk to the Chinese government about giving you the opportunity to have input on the names of the Giant Pandas!!” she wrote.
Similar fundraising request letters were sent to Greg Sarris, chairman of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, and Dominic Ng, CEO of East West Bank, though without mention of the panda technology. They also declined to donate, the mayor’s office said.
Altman and Benioff did not respond to requests for comment.
In a statement, the zoo declined to confirm whether the individuals who received letters from Breed had donated to the panda campaign. The city is working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on the arrangements with China.
A zoo spokesperson also addressed an April San Francisco Chronicle investigation that revealed significant safety issues at the facility, saying it will collaborate with panda experts “to ensure the highest standards of care for its new arrivals.”