Ministers from the Group of Seven industrialised nations met in eastern Japan on Saturday to address artificial intelligence governance, as the usage of AI chatbots grows rapidly, as well as other high-priority concerns such as secure digital infrastructure.
The two-day G7 Digital and Technology Ministers’ Meeting in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture, is one of a series of ministerial meetings leading up to the G7 summit next month.
One of its goals is to promote technology that increase the flow of cross-border data, as well as a free and open internet.
“While advancement of AI technologies can make business of the government and the private sector more efficient and more productive, it could create unexpected challenges to democracy,” said Digital Minister Taro Kono, who is co-chairing the meeting with Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura and Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Takeaki Matsumoto.
With several nations tightening rules on the use of OpenAI’s ChatGPT because to privacy concerns, the fast-paced pace of AI development has emphasised the need for worldwide standards to control the technology.
In addition to opposing usage that would harm democratic ideals, the G7 digital ministers hope to adopt an action plan to encourage responsible AI use, calling for broad stakeholder participation in the development of international standards.
The ministers are also expected to develop an action plan for internet regulation, addressing challenges such as fake news and other types of disinformation witnessed during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, for example.
Additionally, digital ministers hope to establish an international framework for Data Free Flow with Trust, a concept proposed by Japan at the World Economic Forum annual summit in 2019 to facilitate global economic growth through free data flows across borders with trusted interoperable governance.
The G7 consists of the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United States, as well as the European Union. For the first time since 2016, Japan occupies the rotating G-7 presidency.
Ministers from India and Indonesia, the hosts of the Group of 20 major economies and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meetings this year, as well as Ukraine, have been invited to the meeting.
