A Politically Neutral Hub for Basic AI Research
In this CSS Policy Perspective, Sophie-Charlotte Fischer and Andreas Wenger warn that policymakers and experts increasingly view artificial intelligence (AI) within the narrow context of great power competition. The authors argue that international science diplomacy could help change this situation. What is needed is a politically neutral hub for basic AI research, committed to the responsible, inclusive, and peaceful development and use of the new technology.
Image courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy/Flickr.
Key Points
- State actors increasingly view AI as a strategic resource and try to influence the innovation process and the proliferation of AI technologies.
- In the context of increasingly competitive political rhetoric, the risks associated with as-yet immature AI technologies are growing.
- What is needed is a politically neutral hub for basic AI research, committed to the responsible, inclusive, and peaceful development and use of the new technologies.
- Switzerland has a dynamic AI ecosystem and is also well positioned politically to serve as host state for AI governance initiatives.