philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

Our quick guide to the 6 ways we can regulate AI

A legally binding AI treaty

The OECD AI principles 

The Global Partnership on AI

The EU’s AI Act

Technical industry standards

The United Nations

The United Nations, which counts 193 countries as its members, wants to be the sort of international organization that could support and facilitate global coordination on AI. In order to do that, the UN set up a new technology envoy in 2021. That year, the UN agency UNESCO and member countries also adopted a voluntary AI ethics framework, in which member countries pledge to, for example, introduce ethical impact assessments for AI, assess the environmental impact of AI, and ensure that AI promotes gender equality and is not used for mass surveillance. 

Pros: The UN is the only meaningful place on the international stage where countries in the Global South have been able to influence AI policy. While the West has committed to OECD principles, the UNESCO AI ethics framework has been hugely influential in developing countries, which are newer to AI ethics. Notably, China and Russia, which have largely been excluded from Western AI ethics debates, have also signed the principles.  

Cons: That raises the question of how sincere countries are in following the voluntary ethical guidelines, as many countries, including China and Russia, have used AI to surveil people. The UN also has a patchy track record when it comes to tech. The organization’s first attempt at global tech coordination was a fiasco: the diplomat chosen as technology envoy was suspended after just five days following a harassment scandal. And the UN’s attempts to come up with rules for lethal autonomous drones (also known as killer robots) haven’t made any progress for years. 

Influence rating: 2/5

See the full story here: https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/05/22/1073482/our-quick-guide-to-the-6-ways-we-can-regulate-ai/