World Leaders Gather for AI Seoul Summit to Discuss Risks and Regulations of Artificial Intelligence

The AI Seoul Summit: World Leaders to Discuss Risks and Benefits of Artificial Intelligence

SEOUL, South Korea – World leaders are set to converge virtually on Tuesday for the AI Seoul Summit, where they are expected to adopt a new agreement on artificial intelligence. The summit aims to address the potential risks associated with AI while also exploring ways to promote its benefits and innovation.

The event serves as a follow-up to last November’s inaugural AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in the United Kingdom, where participating countries committed to collaborating to mitigate the “catastrophic” risks posed by the rapid advancements in AI.

Co-hosted by the South Korean and U.K. governments, the two-day summit comes at a time when major tech companies like Meta, OpenAI, and Google are rolling out the latest versions of their AI models.

On Tuesday evening, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will convene with other world leaders, industry figures, and heads of international organizations for a virtual conference. The summit will be followed by an in-person meeting of digital ministers and experts on Wednesday.

In a joint article published in South Korea’s JoongAng Ilbo and the UK’s inews site, Yoon and Sunak emphasized the need to accelerate efforts in response to the rapidly changing AI landscape.

While the U.K. summit focused on AI safety issues, the agenda for the AI Seoul Summit has been expanded to include discussions on innovation and inclusivity, according to Wang Yun-jong, a deputy director of national security in South Korea.

The agreement to be reached at the summit will encompass outcomes related to safety, innovation, and inclusivity, as per Park Sang-wook, senior presidential adviser for science and technology for President Yoon.

Participants include leaders from the Group of Seven wealthy democracies, Australia, Singapore, the U.N., the EU, and representatives from major tech companies like Google, Meta, and Amazon. Notably, China will send a representative to the in-person meeting on Wednesday but will not participate in the virtual summit.

The summit comes at a crucial time as governments worldwide seek to establish regulations for AI amid its rapid development and potential to revolutionize various aspects of daily life. The goal is to mitigate risks such as job displacement, misinformation, and privacy concerns.

In response to these challenges, developers of powerful AI systems are collaborating to set shared safety standards. Facebook’s Meta Platforms and Amazon recently joined the Frontier Model Forum, a group focused on AI safety standards.

The AI Seoul Summit marks an interim meeting ahead of a full-fledged in-person summit pledged by France. With discussions on AI safety and innovation, the summit aims to pave the way for a balanced approach to AI that benefits humanity.