Guterres warns against AI control by “saw of countries or companies”

O portuguese leader made this appeal during a speech at the inauguration of the World Conference on Artificial Intelligence (WAIC), the main event of this emerging sector in China, which takes place until Monday in Shanghai.

“AI may be one of the greatest opportunities for humanity in the 21st century, but it may also be one of its greatest risks. ... Technology must be at the service of people and not the other way around,” Guterres warned.

From their perspective, risks focus on the threat of “even greater inequalities” in income, opportunities or security: “We cannot allow that to happen. The challenge we face is to ensure that AI becomes a force for greater inclusion and common progress.”.

“One third of humanity remains disconnected. Many countries still face gaps in connectivity, infrastructure and access to energy. Computing capacity, data resources and technical knowledge remain concentrated,” said the UN representative.

In this sense, Guterres asked “total support” to the leaders present for UN initiatives, such as a global network of exchange and cooperation in capacity building in AI or a global fund for this technology.

The aim of Portuguese is that technology “be built with developing countries for developing countries”. “This means open models that countries can adopt, computing capacity that they can support and training for the people who will use it,” he explained.

The UN Secretary-General expressed his hope that the AI would be an essential tool for sustainable development objectives, by “accelerating medical advances, transforming education, strengthening food systems and agricultural productivity, or boosting new industries and creating decent jobs.”.

Nevertheless, he defended the need to regulate the safety of this technology: “The systems that cross borders need rules that cross borders”.

“ We need inclusive, interconnected and rooted governance in international law. Human rights must be protected. Humans must maintain control over any life or death decision. And no AI system should be placed in the hands of a child before it is demonstrated that it is safe,” he listed.

Finally, Guterres addressed the growing energy demand derived from the AI’s advance, demanding that “all large AI companies reveal the complete environmental footprint of their systems and feed them with renewable energy before 2030.”.