The explosive development of Artificial Intelligence has raised ethical concerns across the globe. How to responsibly govern this disruptive technology topped the agenda of this year's World AI Conference in Shanghai. Reporter Wu Bin talks to experts to get their views on one of the world's most pressing issues.
More than 500 companies are taking part in the World AI Conference this year, exhibiting more than 1,500 new technologies. Running until Sunday, many companies say they are investing in AI to boost industrial development.
GU YUE Vice President, Marketing Head of China & East Asia Operations Schneider Electric "We have already organized one AI hub in China, working for this purpose, and then also to keep improving our AI engine, and also to develop those tools, those platforms to empower a customer, either to increase their productivity or to decrease their energy consumption."
WU BIN Shanghai "The World AI Conference has been held annually since 2018, but it's the first time that the conference emphasized on AI safety and governance. It's implied in the theme this year – 'Governing AI for Good and for All.'"
The EU Act on Artificial Intelligence passed in May this year, and became the first major regulation of the new tech on the global stage. France is one country leading the way, and says it is willing to work with China to deal with risks. The two countries released a joint declaration on AI and global governance during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to France, also in May this year. Their stated aim is to promote secure, reliable and trustworthy AI.
GAEL VAROQUAUX Research Director, French National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology "It's really important that we work together, because in an ideal world, the objects that we create would be commons. So I it's good to have a for instance, a AI with a Chinese large language model and a French AI with a French large language model. But if we do this, we're creating gaps between our societies. So this is why we need those joint statements and working together to try to bridge the gap between our countries."
On Thursday, a Shanghai Declaration on Global AI Governance was issued at the opening session of the 2024 World AI Conference. It calls for global cooperation to achieve AI's full potential for the greater well-being of all humanity.
ZHANG YAQIN Dean, Institute for AI Industry Research Tsinghua University "If we don't take into account global considerations, we're going to create a new divide in AI, just like the digital divide in the past. The AI divide is going to do a lot of damage to our future productivity, to our entire labour market, and to human development as a whole."
In terms of cooperating on AI governance, Zhang says it requires countries to communicate and reach a consensus on different issues, including red lines for safety and regulatory standards. He says China is already doing this with big countries, including the United States, as well as developing countries to make sure no one is left behind. Wu Bin, CGTN, Shanghai.