The Artificial Intelligence Action Summit officially came to a close in the early afternoon of Tuesday 11 February, after several days of discussions on the possibilities offered by AI.
Around a hundred countries, including China, France and India (the two co-organisers of the event) and the European Union, called for greater coordination of AI governance, requiring a “global dialogue”, and for the avoidance of “market concentration” to make this technology more accessible.
In a joint statement, the signatories pledge to work towards an “open”, “inclusive” and “ethical” AI, focused on human rights and people and whose development would have a “positive impact” on the labour market and sustainable growth (see EUROPE 13576/4).
The creation of an observatory on the energy impact of artificial intelligence, steered by the International Energy Agency, was also made official, as was a coalition for sustainable AI that intends to bring together leading companies in the sector (see EUROPE 13576/5).
A global statement weakened by the absence of the United States and the United Kingdom. However, two significant countries are missing from the list. Washington and London are not among the signatories of the statement.
The British government cited the “national interest” to explain its refusal. In mid-January, the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, declared that his country would “follow [its] own path: we will test and understand AI before we regulate it to make sure that when we do it, it’s proportionate and grounded”.
The United States has given no official reason for its absence from the list of signatories.
But the Vice President, J.D. Vance, who attended the Summit, delivered an offensive speech, positioning his country as the world leader in AI and warning those who would like to put in place restrictions deemed excessive against American industries (see other news).
For Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who co-chaired the Summit and will host the next one, the challenge is not to leave “the global South” behind in a technological revolution.
“We need to continue advancing international governance of artificial intelligence”, he insisted. “This is what will enable us to consolidate the elements of confidence in AI, and what will enable us to lay down the rules, because we need these rules for it to move forward”.
French President Emmanuel Macron has called for a “framework of trust” that guarantees “respect for privacy” and “creativity”, and “prevents artificial intelligence from being used for mass control”.
As for the European Commission, represented by its President, Ursula von der Leyen, it has announced the launch of a €200 billion initiative for AI in Europe (see other news).
“The frontier is constantly moving. And global leadership is still up for grabs”, she said.
See the Summit statement: https://aeur.eu/f/fg0 (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre)