18 countries conclude pact against misuse of AI
Governments around the world are pushing for influence in the development of artificial intelligence applications. For the first time, an international agreement to curb misuse has now been reached. The USA and Germany are on board.
On Sunday (local time), the USA, Germany and 16 other countries presented what appears to be the first detailed international agreement to protect against the misuse of artificial intelligence. In the 20-page document, the 18 countries agreed that companies that design and use AI must develop and deploy it in a way that protects customers and the general public from misuse.
"This is the first time we've seen an acknowledgement that it shouldn't just be about cool features and how fast we can get them to market (...)," the director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Jen Easterly, told Reuters. Rather, the guidelines of the agreement would reflect that the most important thing to be done in the design phase is security.
Non-binding agreement
However, the agreement is non-binding and contains mostly general recommendations, such as monitoring AI systems for misuse, protecting data from manipulation and vetting software providers. According to Jen Easterly, it is nevertheless important that so many countries support the idea that the safety of AI systems must come first.
The agreement is the latest initiative in a series of attempts by governments around the world to exert more influence on the international development of AI. Europe is ahead of the United States when it comes to regulations around AI.
For example, lawmakers in France, Germany and Italy recently reached an agreement on how to regulate artificial intelligence that supports mandatory self-regulation through codes of conduct for so-called baseline AI models. In addition to the USA and Germany, the 18 countries that have signed the new guidelines include the UK, Italy, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Poland, Australia, Chile, Israel, Nigeria and Singapore.
The 18-country agreement emphasizes the necessity for companies utilizing AI to prioritize customer and public protection from misuse, aligning with the non-binding guidelines mentioned at international conferences and agreements on AI development.
Moving forward, these multinational conferences and agreements will continue to shape the global AI landscape by fostering cooperation and setting guidelines to ensure responsible AI deployment.
Source: www.ntv.de
