Inside the United Nations’ AI policy grab

🌈 Abstract

The article discusses a forthcoming UN report that proposes the creation of a global AI governance forum to address the proliferation of AI-related initiatives and the lack of representation from the global South.

🙋 Q&A

[01] The UN's Proposal for Global AI Governance

1. What is the key proposal in the UN report?

• The UN report proposes the creation of a UN-backed AI forum and a global AI Office to "fill gaps and bring coherence to the fast-emerging ecosystem of international AI governance responses."

2. What are the main criticisms of the UN report's proposal?

• The proposal is unlikely to be well-received in Western capitals, as it is seen as undermining the work of the G7 and potentially advancing China's agenda by creating competing bodies and forums.
• The EU official criticized the report for not incorporating the EU's suggestions to align it with the EU's AI rulebook.

3. What are the potential challenges to the UN's attempt to fill the global policy vacuum on AI governance?

• There are concerns that the proliferation of AI-related summits, forums, and voluntary commitments may consolidate as AI capability improvement flattens out and the excitement level dies down.
• Experts believe that it may not be feasible to put everything under "one big umbrella" to deal with all aspects of AI across economies and societies.

[02] The Landscape of International AI Governance Initiatives

1. What are some of the key international initiatives on AI governance mentioned in the article?

• The G7's "Hiroshima AI Process" on voluntary guiding principles for generative AI
• The AI Safety Summits in the UK and South Korea
• The Global Partnership on AI (GPAI) promoting responsible AI development
• Efforts by the OECD, G20, African Union, and UNESCO to steer AI technology

2. What is the concern about the representation in these initiatives?

• The article states that while the G7 countries are involved in all the key AI-related initiatives, 118 countries in the global South are not involved in any of them, leading to a lack of global representation.