UK summit reaches Bletchley Declaration, calling for responsible AI development

Leading Artificial Intelligence (AI) nations have reached a world-first agreement, the "Bletchley Declaration," at Bletchley Park in the UK.

The declaration "established a shared understanding of the opportunities and risks posed by frontier AI," the UK government said in a statement on Wednesday.

It was agreed upon by 28 countries (including China and the U.S.) and the EU, with the aim of boosting global efforts to cooperate on AI safety.

In a separate statement accompanying the declaration, Britain stated, "The declaration fulfills key summit objectives in establishing a shared agreement and responsibility regarding the risks, opportunities, and a forward process for international collaboration on frontier AI safety and research, particularly through greater scientific collaboration."

It encourages transparency and accountability from actors developing frontier AI technology concerning their plans to measure, monitor, and mitigate potentially harmful capabilities.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said, "This is a landmark achievement that sees the world's greatest AI powers agreeing on the urgency behind understanding the risks of AI, helping ensure the long-term future of our children and grandchildren."

The declaration sets out a two-pronged agenda focused on identifying risks of shared concern, building a scientific understanding of them, and developing cross-country policies to mitigate these risks.

"This includes, alongside increased transparency by private actors developing frontier AI capabilities, appropriate evaluation metrics, tools for safety testing, and developing relevant public sector capability and scientific research," according to the declaration.

(With input from Reuters)