Paris (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The British government refused to sign the Paris AI summit declaration, stating it would only join initiatives that align with the country’s national interest.
The UK and US have declined to sign the Paris AI summit declaration on promoting “inclusive and sustainable” artificial intelligence, undermining hopes for a unified approach to regulating and advancing the technology.
Both countries have not explained the reasons for withdrawing their signatures from the document, which was supported by 60 other nations on Tuesday, including China, India, Japan, Australia, and Canada.
What did Downing Street say about the Paris AI Summit Declaration?
A representative from the British government stated that while France is a strong AI partner, the government will engage in “initiatives that serve the national interests of the UK.”
The spokesperson pointed out that Britain has joined the summit’s Coalition for Sustainable AI and backed a statement on cybersecurity.
In response to a question about whether the UK had declined to sign because of the US’s decision, the official spokesperson said they were “not aware of the US’s reasons or position” regarding the declaration.
Why did the US refuse to sign the Paris AI summit declaration?
The US decision not to sign was confirmed shortly after US Vice President JD Vance’s speech at the Grand Palais, where he slammed Europe’s overregulation of technology and warned against working with China.
Mr Vance’s address, delivered before leaders like French President Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, expressed his frustration with the global handling of AI regulation and development. However, Keir Starmer did not attend the summit.
What is included in the Paris AI Summit declaration?
As reported by the Guardian, the four-page declaration stated that “the rapid development of AI technologies is driving a major paradigm shift with various implications for our citizens and societies.”
The document calls for “an inclusive, open and multi-stakeholder approach” to artificial intelligence that is “ethical, safe, secure, trustworthy and human rights-based,” while also urging swift actions to “reduce inequalities” in access.
The declaration highlights the need to address a range of issues, such as human rights, gender equality, and linguistic diversity, alongside a commitment to tackle the risks AI poses to information integrity and improve transparency.
What did the chief of AI developer Anthropic say about the Paris AI summit?
Dario Amodei said the AI Action Summit in Paris was a “missed opportunity” across various dimensions.
Mr Amodei highlighted the need for the next international summit to ensure that democratic countries do not miss the opportunity of the Paris summit, urging nations to take charge of AI, address safety risks, and mitigate its social and economic disruption.
What AI opportunities action plan has been launched by the British government?
On 13 January, Sir Keir Starmer revealed the government’s new AI Opportunities Plan, led by Matt Clifford CBE, a tech entrepreneur and head of the Advanced Research and Invention Agency.
Some major features of the action plan included:
- The Action Plan suggests increasing the capacity of the AI research resource twentyfold by 2030, focusing on advanced supercomputers for AI research.
- The plan aims to address the AI talent gap by exploring new educational pathways and potential immigration changes.
- The AI action plan focuses on revisiting the British legal framework on copyrighted data, launching a National Data Library, and establishing a UK media asset set for international licensing.