US, UK refuse to sign AI summit communique calling for 'global governance'

By Alan Katz 

The US and UK were among countries that declined to sign the final statement released Tuesday from the AI Summit hosted by France that called for promoting international governance over artificial intelligence. 

In a speech before the communique was released, Vice President JD Vance argued strongly against the European Union’s tough regulatory approach to social-media platforms and AI and what he termed as foreign governments “considering tightening the screws” on US tech companies.  

 

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman, Dave Pares, told reporters on Tuesday that while the UK had worked “closely” with the French throughout the summit, “we haven’t been able to agree all parts of the leaders’ declaration.”

 

The communique, which was signed by 60 participating countries or organizations, listed several priorities, including “strengthening international cooperation and promoting the coordination of international governance,” as well as “ensuring that AI is open to all, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, in keeping with international frameworks.”

 

ChatGPT’s launch more than two years ago kicked off a global AI race, with tech firms and others investing billions in computer chips, data centers and energy projects as well as AI systems developers themselves. French President Emmanuel Macron and others have expressed concerns that Europe is slipping behind the US and China in AI development and he used the summit as an occasion to tout a total of €109 billion ($113 billion) in AI-related projects in France.

 

China, as well as summit co-host India, were among the signatories. The Paris summit included participants from more than 100 countries, according to the communique released by Macron’s office.