Rishi Sunak to Host AI Summit Discussion Prior to Meeting with Elon Musk
On Thursday, Rishi Sunak, the UK’s representative, will engage in discussions with delegates from the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations regarding the necessary measures to ensure the safe implementation of AI. This comes after Sunak successfully gained China’s support for a global initiative aimed at mitigating the potential risks associated with this technology. The British prime minister is currently leading discussions on the last day of the inaugural Artificial Intelligence Safety Summit held at Bletchley Park in England. Following this, he will have a conversation with tech billionaire Elon Musk in central London.
One session will focus on “like-minded” countries, while the other will feature companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Microsoft, Meta and xAI.
They are discussing a plan for state-sponsored testing and evaluation of AI models before they are released, Sunak’s office said.
“Artificial intelligence has the potential to transform every aspect of our lives, from healthcare to education and the economy,” Sunak told reporters upon arrival in southern England.
“Thanks to the actions we have taken this week, Britain is well placed to be at the forefront of this change.”
Some technology and political leaders have warned that the rapid development of artificial intelligence is an existential threat if left unchecked, triggering a race among governments and institutions to design safeguards and regulation.
In a first in the West’s efforts to manage its safe development, China’s vice minister joined leaders and technology leaders from the United States and the European Union on Wednesday at a summit focused on highly capable general-purpose models called “border artificial intelligence.”
“THE BLETCHLEY NOTICE”
More than 25 countries present, including the United States and China, as well as the EU, signed the “Bletchley Declaration” on Wednesday, which says countries must cooperate and create a common approach to surveillance.
It focuses on identifying risks of common concern, building a scientific understanding of them, and developing policies between countries to mitigate them.
Governments are now trying to chart a way forward with AI companies that fear being weighed down by regulation before the technology reaches its full potential.
China is a key participant in the summit. But some British lawmakers have questioned whether it should exist, given the low level of trust in Chinese technology between Beijing, Washington and many European capitals.
However, Sunak said AI cannot be discussed without talking about one of the world’s undisputed leaders in the technology.
“We’ve all signed the same paper, whether it’s us, the Americans, the Europeans [or] China, which I think is a good sign of progress,” he told Politico’s Power Play podcast.
US Vice President Kamala Harris and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will participate in the negotiations on Thursday.
The last words, however, will be the conversation between Sunak and Musk, which will be held in central London later on Thursday and will be streamed on Musk’s X platform, formerly known as Twitter.
