Last Update: June 13, 2023, 01:34 AM IST
Washington DC, United States of America (USA)
FILE PHOTO: The words AI artificial intelligence are seen in this illustration taken on May 4, 2023. (Reuters / Dado Ruvik / Illustration)
Generative AI technology that can spin authoritative prose from text prompts has captivated the public since ChatGPT launched six months ago.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday backed a proposal by some artificial intelligence officials to create an international AI watchdog body like the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Generative AI technology that can spin authoritative prose from text prompts has captivated the masses since ChatGPT launched six months ago and has become the fastest-growing app ever. AI has also become a matter of concern for its ability to create deep fake photos and other misinformation.
“The alarm bells on the latest form of artificial intelligence – generative AI – are ringing deafening. And they are loudest from the developers who designed it,” Guterres told reporters. “We must take those warnings seriously.”
He also called for work to begin by the end of the year on a high-level AI advisory body to regularly review AI governance and make recommendations on how it can be aligned with human rights, the rule of law and the common good. The plan has been announced.
But on Monday he said: “I would be in favor of the idea that we could have an artificial intelligence agency … inspired by the International Atomic Energy Agency today.”
Guterres said such a model could be “very interesting”, but noted that “only member states can create it, not the UN Secretariat”. The Vienna-based IAEA was created in 1957 and promotes the safe, secure and peaceful uses of nuclear technologies by looking into possible violations of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). It has 176 member countries.
OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, said last month that a body like the IAEA could ban deployments, enforce security standards and track computing power usage.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has also supported the idea and said that he wants the UK to be the home of global AI security regulation. The UK is due to host a summit later this year on how coordinated international action can tackle the risks of AI.
Guterres said he supported plans for a summit in Britain, but said it must be preceded by “serious work”. He said he plans to appoint a scientific advisory board of AI experts and chief scientists from UN agencies in the coming days.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – reuters,
