Francesco Lapenta, the Founding Director of the John Cabot University Institute of Future and Innovation Studies (Rome, Italy), a member of the History of AI Board of AIWS Innovation Network (AIWS.net), comments at the “Framework for Global Law and Accord on AI and Digital” of December 12, 2021:
“We must begin taking critical first steps toward global collaboration and safe AI innovation.
One that stands out above the rest is:
Data and Diplomacy based on Open and FAIR Data Principles and Tools, (Data Stewardship and Data Trusts).
Regulation of data sharing is a critical issue that requires immediate international and national coordination, and with data serving as the only energy source for future AI applications, it is one of the most pressing areas of intervention. In medicine, 85 percent of research data is allegedly “wasted” and never used again. There are quantifiable scientific, social, and economic costs to “data waste” and “reproducing overlapping and duplicate data.” From this perspective, I consider “Open Data as Sustainable Data,” data that can significantly contribute to data waste reduction, the optimization and expediting of scientific discovery, increased social benefits, and contribute to economic growth. I consider creating a Global Model for Data Sharing and AI-Driven Sustainable Development a top priority.”
I would like to express my sincere gratitude for the invitation to speak today. I made a visit to Boston in 2015 as then Prime Minister and have good memories of visiting the Kennedy Library, Harvard University and MIT. How I wish today that I could revisit Boston and make a real participation in the forum instead of a virtual one.
If we look at the world, we see drastic change in balance of power in recent years, as a result of the rise of nations with state views and values different from our own. In addition, the development of advanced technology is blurring the boundaries between “civilian and military” and “peacetime and contingency.
Cyber-attacks are a prime example of this, with malicious attacks in various forms threatening our peaceful daily lives. Moreover, in some cases, A.I. technology, which is supposed to enrich society, is misused for cyber-attacks.
The security environment surrounding us is undergoing significant changes along with the substantial progress in the “Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Let’s take cyberattacks as an example. Ransomware has become a major threat worldwide in recent years.
Here in Japan, people’s lives and safety are practically at stake, after some hospital facilities have become the target of Ransomware attacks and forced the suspend new medical consultations.
In addition, several cyber-attacks are large-scaled, shrewd, and strongly suspected of state involvement.
In recent years, critical infrastructures and software companies have been targeted, and therefore the damage tends to increase.
Japan, led by our intelligence bureau, is committed to attribution of such malicious attacks in cooperation with allied and comrade countries. At the same time, our government is determined and collaborating together to promote a legal system that could overcome the vulnerability of critical infrastructure in light of national security.
In recent years, A.I. has been used in a variety of fields.
While sophistication of A.I. enriches and makes our daily lives increasingly convenient, it poses some risks.
There are nations that plan to spread disinformation through deep fakes and to incite and brainwash their citizens.
This is a obvious challenge to universal values of freedom and democracy that we should uphold.
Also, A.I. technology can also be used in actual weapons, and the nature of AI-based autonomous weapons has become the subject of international debate.
As I have just described, traditional approaches to realize security are not sufficient to deal with the various contemporary issues and challenges.
Cameron F. Kerry “The Framework for Global Law and Accord on AI and Digital”
December 12, 2021
Boston Global Forum
It is a pleasure today to honor Andreas Norlén for his work as Speaker of the Swedish Riksdag in hammering out the formation a coalition government. He has been honored across Europe (DE, Spain, Italy), and it is fitting that he is now being honored in the United States.
Sweden has long been held up as a paragon of social democracy and progressive policies. I remember when it was an opposition research point that Mike Dukakis took reports on Swedish child care policy as beach reading. Sweden has also been a global technology leader – with companies like Ericsson and Spotify, and people like Goran Marby at ICANN.
AN: “Like no other.” The political currents Andreas Norlén faced are evidence that the challenges of fragmentation and polarization, nativism, authoritarianism, and disinformation politics are present even in the most democratic countries on earth.
This makes it all the more important that democratic countries band together. Artificial intelligence, e-commerce, malicious online content, election interference, and cyberthreats are all global issues magnified by network effects that no one country – even the United States – can manage by itself.
The issues are broad and complex, and there is no one forum capable of addressing all the issues. Effective policymaking on challenges enabled by digital technology will many different avenues, a network of networks in parallel to the communications systems that link us.
The Boston Global Forum is one node of the wide and diverse network needed. This week’s Democracy Summit is another. The week before last, I attended the Future Tech Forum, where the UK government convened G7 members with ten other democratic countries that are global or regional leaders in digital technology to explore issues in technology policy and development emerging in the next 5-10 years and their implications for public policies.
Packets of progress can travel by diverse paths across these many networks and assemble into a recognizable whole.
AI has been a focus of the work the BGF and the Michael Dukakis Institute. AI is a critical path for cooperation for several reasons. First, it is essential to successful development. In the 21st century, most scientific research involves international collaboration. But this is particularly the case for AI research and development because it crosses institutions, disciplines, and borders because of the scale of data, compute power, skills needed, and relies heavily on open source software.
Cooperation also presents a unique opportunity for collaboration because every country is still in early stages of policymaking. That makes it possible to align approaches in ways that can avoid divergence of the kind that is causing barriers to the free flow of data between the EU and the U.S. and present a coherent counterpoint to China’s techno-authoritarianism, prevent a race to the bottom.
Since the Policy Lab in September, along with Brookings Institution colleagues and partners at the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels, I released a comprehensive report on international cooperation in artificial intelligence policy and development. The report focuses on 15 concrete steps to put cooperation into practice.
It starts with a simple proposition, that likeminded governments “commit to considering international cooperation in drafting and implementing AI policies.” At the UK’s Future Tech Forum, the UK government gave an example of our recommendation in practice: it asked the participating countries to comment on its proposed Online Safety Act. This is an unusual step—and one that needs to become a norm in digital policymaking.
Much of the report focuses on mechanics of regulation, risk assessment, and standards development. Recall how the internet was developed – researchers like Tim Berners-Lee and organizations like WWW Forum, SDOs, ICANN — stakeholders and technicians – hammered out technical standards and systems. These are an example of the kind of policymaking that needs to happen with regard to AI policy and standards – transnational, multistakeholder, public-private collaboration.
One difference from the technical development of the early internet is that the impact is many times broader, and some multinational corporations have acquired much great power. These companies are essential participants in the policymaking but cannot be the ones to make the rules.
There is one other concrete step for international collaboration on AI I want to mention today. It is that likeminded government commit to collaboration on research and development on projects to harness AI for public goods of global importance, like earth observation for climate change, more powerful computation for privacy-protecting ways of sharing data, or monitoring of public health.
Such projects are ways not only to work together on solving important problems for humanity, but also of working through issues like ethics and data governance in the context of specific uses cases where there is strong motivation to get the job done. It is a challenge but, as President Kennedy said about going to the moon, we should do this “not because [it is] easy, but because {it is] hard… that goal will serve to organize the best measure of our energies and skills.”
* * *
AI is just one domain of digital policymaking where the U.S., its allies, and likeminded countries need to work in concert and align their policies. The price of not doing so is divergence and fragmentation. We already in effect have bifurcated internets on this earth, China’s and a shared internet. We don’t need further forking to diminish global network effects that benefit our planet.
I am grateful to BGF for its work to bring leaders around the world together to build cooperation and trust, and to Andreas Norlén for his example of the painstaking and patient building it takes to forge consensus out of disparate positions. These are the tasks ahead.
On Global Cyber Security Day, December 12, 2021, Boston Global Forum organized the Symposium “Framework for Global Law and Accord on AI and Digital” with attendance of distinguished leaders and thinkers:
Governor Michael Dukakis, Speaker of Swedish Parliament Andreas Norlen, former Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe, former US Acting Secretary of Commerce Cameron Kerry, former President of Croatia Ivo Josipovic, former Prime Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina Zlatko Lagumdzija, European Parliament Member Eva Kaili, Professor Thomas Patterson, Professor Nazli Choucri, former Vice President of Mats Karlsson, President of Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, Paul Nemitz, Francesco Lapenta, Robert Whitfield, Nguyen Anh Tuan, Jim McManus, and Former Assistant Secretary of Massachusetts Nam Pham.
Governor Michael Dukakis honored the Speaker of Riksdag, Andreas Norlen, as World Leader for Peace and Security 2021.
Distinguished speeches from Andreas Norlen, Cameron Kerry, and Shinzo Abe contributed thoughtful ideas and significant messages to the world today and to the Global Alliance for Digital Governance and Global Law and Accord on AI and Digital.
BGF will introduce these special speeches on the BGF website over the coming weeks.
The discussion and debate are brilliant with many great ideas for the Draft of Declaration of Action for Global Law and Accord on AI and Digital.
Mr. Nam Pham, former Assistant Secretary of Massachusetts Government, raised his ideas in the discussion about the action plan for Global Law and Accord on AI and Digital:
My most favorite Einstein’s quote is “Imagination is more important than knowledge.”
Our current knowledge is that there is not much we can do to hold rogue regimes dictatorships like China or Russia accountable for their misuses of AI. So let’s imagine that we can come up with some concrete actionable plans that we can hold any bad actors accountable whether it is a bad country or corporation.
We need to think outside of the box and shoot for the stars or the moon.”
I am pleased to announce that this year’s recipient of the Boston Global Forum’s World Leader for Peace and Security Award is Andreas Norlén, Speaker of the Swedish Parliament, for his efforts to enhance transparency and unity in Sweden’s governmental processes.
In his speech at the AI World Society Summit 2020, Andreas Norlén recognized both the potentials and risks of Artificial Intelligence in governance. Misinformation and disinformation can have adverse effects on governmental processes and democracy, such as skewing public opinion and compromising trust in democracy. He pointed out that increasing public awareness and facilitating cooperation among parties and committees within the government can help to harness the power of AI while protecting democracy from the risks.
Since being elected Speaker of the Riksdag in 2018, Norlén has served as the Chair of the Committee on the Constitution, the War Delegation, the Committee on Justice, and the Advisory Council on Foreign Affairs. He has played a pivotal role supporting constitutional matters relating to the media, the auditing of governmental processes, the Riksdag’s work on EU matters, issues concerning privacy, the central government budget process, and matters regarding the nomination of permanent judges in all Swedish courts.
Norlén has continually worked across party lines to ensure unified support for the conclusions reached by the Committee on the Constitution, and asserting that the practices determined by the Committee should obtain broad support in the Riksdag and remain uncompromised when there is a change in the political majority of the Riksdag.
These goals match those of the Boston Global Forum. We are also at one with Speaker Norlén on the need for an international accord on the use of Artificial Intelligence, based on shared values and democratic traditions, an accord that will require sustained Transatlantic leadership if it is to be realized.
For these and other reasons, the Boston Global Forum is pleased today to present our World Leader for Peace and Security Award to Speaker of the Swedish Parliament, Andreas Norlén.
