Finance
The Group of Seven (G7) industry ministers have stated that while artificial intelligence (AI) is essential to attaining sustainable growth, its application must be cautious and well-rounded.
Following a two-day summit in the Italian cities of Trento and Verona, the G7 pledged on Friday to strike a suitable balance between encouraging innovation and the requirement for suitable safeguards in order to advance a reliable, safe, and secure AI, according to Xinhua news agency.
“We recognize that AI and other emerging technologies, if shaped to be safe… can be pivotal for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” representatives to the meeting said in a final declaration.
These tools can have a positive impact on many sectors, and a “vast potential” to boost productivity, efficiency, business opportunities, and scientific discoveries, they said.
Meanwhile, the group also warned that digital technologies, including AI, are posing many complex challenges, including those concerning the respect of privacy, personal data protection, security and safety of intellectual property.
They also noted that online platforms, along with AI-enabled products, could be used to facilitate hate speech and disinformation, and other forms of manipulation, potentially fuelling social divides.
“These challenges and risks reinforce the need to integrate ethical considerations in relation to the development and use of such technologies,” they said.
Since Italy is hosting the G7 presidency this year, Alessio Butti, the Under Secretary of State for Technological Innovation in Italy, convened the G7 Ministerial Meeting on Industry, Technology, and Digital.
In addition to delegates from the European Union, the group consists of Canada, the US, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, and Japan.
Source:IANS
