The group of Seven (G7) digital ministers are calling for “risk-based” regulation to be adopted on artificial intelligence.
However, such regulation should also “preserve an open and enabling environment” for the development of AI technologies and be based on democratic values, G7 ministers said in a joint statement issued at the end of a two-day meeting in Japan.
While the ministers recognised that “policy instruments to achieve the common vision and goal of trustworthy AI may vary across G7 members”, the agreement sets a landmark for how major countries govern AI amid privacy concerns and security risks.
“The conclusions of this G7 meeting show that we are definitely not alone in this,” European Commission Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager told Reuters ahead of the agreement.
Governments have especially paid attention to the popularity of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, a chatbot developed by Microsoft Corp-backed OpenAI that has become the fastest-growing app in history since its November launch.
Last week,, four US federal agencies issued a joint statement reaffirming their commitment to promoting responsible innovation in automated systems protecting the public from bias in AI tools.
Separately, US Senator Michael Bennet introduced a bill that would create a task force to look at US policies on AI, and identify how best to reduce threats to privacy, civil liberties and due process.
In addition, European lawmakers reached a preliminary agreement on a new draft of Europe’s planned AI Act.
Recently, Dr Geoffrey Hinton, cognitive psychologist and computer scientist, was reported by the New York Times to have resigned his position at Google to speak freely about his concerns over societal risks from the development of AI.
His share concerns with others who are worried  that they are releasing something dangerous into the wild.
The view is that generative AI can already be a tool for misinformation. Soon, it could be a risk to jobs and tech’s biggest worriers say, it could be a risk to humanity.
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