Paris AI Action Summit: US and UK Refuse to Sign Declaration, Raising Concerns Over Global AI Governance

Why experts call the Paris AI Action Summit 'a missed opportunity'

Euronews Next spoke to experts at the Paris summit for their reactions on the AI summit's declaration. The Paris Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit closed this week with a declaration that outlined policies for ensuring AI is "open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy". Some 60 countries signed the declaration but notably the United Kingdom and the United States did not. The UK cited national security concerns as its reason while the US did not specify exactly why it did not sign the doctrine but the country's vice president, JD Vance, warned delegates in Paris that too much regulation would stifle innovation. However, experts at the summit told Euronews Next that the declaration did not go far enough to address the possible risks and harms caused by AI. "I think that the communique doesn't adequately speak to the sort of real-world risks and harms," said David Leslie, director of ethics and responsible innovation research at The Alan Turing Institute. Some of the most pressing risks of AI include bias, cybersecurity, and data privacy issues. "Action obviously means forward action and progressive action in terms of advancing opportunities for growth and economic benefit," he told Euronews Next. "But action also has to do with redressing the set of existing risks and harms that over the last couple of years, and especially with the scaling of the production and user-generated AI systems, has become sort of obvious to researchers in the field," he added. The AI summit comes as tech companies race to release AI models with competition heating up across the globe. The latest release by China-based company DeepSeek a month ago challenged the status quo of Western tech companies dominating the market with AI models that are more expensive to train. Governments are also ensuring they do not get left behind in the AI race. The newly installed Trump administration in January rescinded previous initiatives under the former government that prioritised AI safety, citing them as obstacles to US innovation. Another approach to the summit that did not go far enough was "addressing the ecosystem level inequities," Leslie said, adding that they were "real barriers to the advancement of inclusive and equitable innovation". He argued that having globally equitable structures for trade between larger tech companies and small and medium-sized countries, especially in the Global South, and access to compute or digital infrastructures, were discussions that could have been spoken more about at the summit. Anthropic's CEO and co-founder Dario Amodei said in a statement that he was disappointed the summit did not do more to address the risks of artificial general intelligence (AGI) and called it a "missed opportunity". "Greater focus and urgency is needed on several topics given the pace at which the technology is progressing," Amodei said in a statement shared with Euronews Next. "The need for democracies to keep the lead, the risks of AI, and the economic transitions that are fast approaching -- these should all be central features of the next summit". Unlike the previous AI summits held in the United Kingdom and in South Korea, which focused more on the potential harms and risks of AI, France made its intentions clear that it was open for business. The Paris summit resembled more of a tech fair or even festival atmosphere with many fancy corporate side events and even a DJ closing the first day at the Grand Palais, which followed French President Emmanuel Macron telling the audience "I have a good friend in the other part of the ocean saying 'drill, baby, drill'," referring to his US counterpart. "Here there is no need to drill. It's 'plug, baby, plug'. Electricity is available, you can plug [it in], it's ready," Macron added. But while strong statements were echoed, a lot of the words from the declaration were just that, experts say. "Being familiar with the diplomatic aspect of these things, I know that when this many countries get together to draft a text, identifying the smallest common denominator often leads to a very weak statement, or even platitudes," said Jessica Galissaire, studies and partnership manager at the France-based Renaissance Numerique think tank. "The use of words like 'sustainable' and 'inclusive' are devoid of any meaning if we don't have a shared understanding of what they mean - which I'm not sure we do at such a high level," she told Euronews Next. "In the end, on the specific topic of ensuring AI developments respect fundamental rights and freedoms, signatories just committed to talking more...so much for an AI 'Action' Summit," she added. However, Galissaire said she was more positive about the environmental pledge and looked forward to seeing the results of a proposed observatory to asses AI's energy impact with the International Energy Agency (IEA). Max Tegmark, the MIT physicist who is the founder and president of the Future of Life Institute, also said he was disappointed in the outcomes of the summit, saying the declaration was weak and did not address security threats. "Given the urgency of the situation, appeasing words that lack substance represent a step backwards for international and technical collaboration, and this weakness led countries not to sign," he said in a statement. "As AI continues to soar ahead, the next summit must reset the conversation, and embolden decisive action to ensure secure, controllable and beneficial AI," he added. The next AI summit will be held in India, which jointly hosted the Paris summit with France. It is unclear what the topics of the next AI summit will tackle.

Paris AI Action Summit: US, UK refuse to sign 'safe' AI statement

Disclaimer: This content generated by AI & may have errors or hallucinations. Edit before use. Read our Terms of use United States and United Kingdom refused to sign a joint statement titled 'Inclusive and Sustainable Artificial Intelligence for People and the Planet' at the AI Action Summit held in Paris from February 10-11, BBC reported. While UK said it had concerns about how national security plays out under the provisions of the statement, US said it was against too much regulation and instead prioritised innovation over safety in the AI domain. India, France and 57 other countries signed the statement, with the two countries co-chairing the Paris AI Action Summit. The statement has chalked out certain priorities to help "advance the public interest and to bridge digital divides through accelerating progress towards the SDGs [UN's Sustainable Development Goals]." Under the statement, the countries agreed to focus on: To deliver on these priorities, the signatories have also identified areas of further discussion and action: As the AI industry advances further, such commitments at the global level are important to ensure that the innovations in the field don't outpace its safety guardrails. Some countries like the US, however, seem to be keen on "pro-growth" approach towards AI even at the expense of safety. At the national legislation as well, the newly elected Trump administration rolled back several AI safety measures that were previously introduced. Some have even pointed out that the Paris Summit as a whole lacked focus on the safety concerns that come with AI and seemed to lean more towards the business side of it. Back in India, the Government has been giving mixed signals about its approach. In March 2024, it came out with an AI advisory that first mandated that all undertested AI models be approved by the government. After receiving almost an instant and intense backlash from the AI startups, the government watered it down to mandatory labeling in case the undertested model provided unreliable answers. Most recently, it has been fluctuating between putting statements that hint at regulation, or only to regulate applications and not technology, or contrastingly, at privilege innovation or even light touch approach like leaving the industry to self-regulate. With India deepening its ties with both US and France, it will be interesting to see what stance it finally takes on AI as the industry continues to advance at lightening speed.

As US and UK refuse to sign the Paris AI Action Summit statement, other countries commit to developing 'open, inclusive, ethical' AI | TechCrunch

The Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris was supposed to culminate with a joint declaration on artificial intelligence signed by dozens of world leaders. While the statement isn't as ambitious as the Bletchley and Seoul declarations, both the U.S. and the U.K. have refused to sign it. It proves once again that it is difficult to reach a consensus around artificial intelligence -- and other topics -- in the current (fraught) geopolitical context. "We feel very strongly that AI must remain free from ideological bias and that American AI will not be co-opted into a tool for authoritarian censorship," Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, said in a speech during the summit's closing ceremony. "The United States of America is the leader in AI, and our administration plans to keep it that way," he added. In all, 61 countries -- including China, India, Japan, Australia and Canada -- have signed the declaration that states a focus on "ensuring AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy." It also calls for greater collaboration when it comes to AI governance, fostering a "global dialogue." Early reactions have expressed disappointment over a lack of ambition. "At the next international summit, we should not repeat this missed opportunity," Anthropic's Dario Amodei wrote in a statement. "The advance of AI presents major new global challenges. We must move faster and with greater clarity to confront them." More countries may sign the declaration in the hours after the event. Lighter regulation of AI has been a common topic across the event. Earlier Tuesday, EU president Ursula von der Leyen reminded dignitaries that EU AI safety regulation is also designed to simplify interactions across the bloc's Member States. "This is the purpose of the AI Act to provide for one single set of safe rules across the European Union -- 450 million people," von der Leyen emphasized. "Instead of 27 different national regulations and safeties in the interest of business." "At the same time, I know that we have to make it easier, and we have to cut red tape -- and we will," she added. On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron urged Europe to simplify its regulations to get back into the AI race. "It's very clear that we have to synchronize with the rest of the world in terms of transmission, in terms of permitting, in terms of authorization, clinical trials -- I mean, in all the different sectors." Government leaders should "avoid the risk-opportunity dilemma" and "the immediate need for regulation, which could block innovation," Macron added in another speech on Tuesday. At the same time, the French President walked a fine line as he defended the need for international governance on artificial intelligence. "We need these rules for artificial intelligence to move forward," he argued. "It's not a question of defiance, it's not a question of thwarting innovation, it's a question of enabling [innovation] to happen at an international level while avoiding fragmentation," Macron added. For the U.S., not signing the AI Action Summit declaration is a matter of diplomatic principle. During the early days of Donald Trump's second presidency, the U.S. has withdrawn from several international bodies, including the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Agreement. AI Summit consensus can now be added to that list.

The US and UK refuse to sign AI safety declaration at Paris summit

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years. TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust. What just happened? A divide emerged between the United States and Europe regarding the regulation of AI at the AI Action summit held in Paris this week. While approximately 60 countries, including China, India, and Germany, signed a declaration to ensure AI is "safe, secure, and trustworthy," the US and the UK notably withheld their support. Vice President JD Vance cautioned against "overly precautionary" regulations on AI, emphasizing the US commitment to maintaining its dominance in the technology. "The Trump administration will ensure that the most powerful AI systems are built in the US, with American-designed and manufactured chips," Vance said before the assembled crowd of world leaders and tech executives. "America wants to partner with all of you... but to create that kind of trust, we need international regulatory regimes that foster the creation of AI technology rather than strangle it," he added. The summit declaration calls for "ensuring AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for all." Although the commitments are non-binding, the US and UK had previously signed similar declarations at earlier AI summits. This shift signals a potentially more competitive approach to AI development under the new US administration. Vance's speech was "a 180-degree turnaround from what we saw with the Biden administration," Keegan McBride, a lecturer at the Oxford Internet Institute, told the Financial Times. The UK government released a brief statement saying it had not been able to sign the agreement due to concerns about national security and global governance. "We felt the declaration didn't provide enough practical clarity on global governance, nor sufficiently address harder questions around national security and the challenge AI poses to it," a government spokesperson told the BBC. Meanwhile, Downing Street insists its decision was not based on the US shift. "This is about our own national interest, ensuring the balance between opportunity and security," the spokesperson said. The US stance comes amid increasing competition with China in AI development, including chip manufacturing, foundational models, AI chatbots, and the energy required for supercomputers. The recent emergence of the cut-price AI model from the Chinese research lab DeepSeek, for example, caught Silicon Valley groups off guard. As for Europe, it is actively seeking to establish a stronger foothold in the AI industry, aiming to reduce reliance on the US and China. French President Emmanuel Macron hosted the two-day summit, where European leaders and companies unveiled approximately 200 billion euros in planned investments in data centers and computing clusters to support the region's AI endeavors. "We need these rules for AI to move forward," he said. Vance also cautioned countries against entering AI deals with "authoritarian regimes," a veiled reference to China. He warned that "partnering with them means chaining your nation to an authoritarian master that seeks to infiltrate, dig in and seize your information infrastructure," citing CCTV and 5G as examples of "cheap tech... [was] heavily subsidized and exported by authoritarian regimes." Concerns were also raised by the US that Current AI, a foundation launched by France during the summit, could be used to funnel money to French-speaking countries. Frederike Kaltheuner, senior EU and global governance lead at the AI Now Institute, noted that following the launch of the powerful open models from DeepSeek, Europeans felt they had a chance to compete in AI. McBride said of Vance's speech: "[It] was like, 'Yeah, that's cute. But guess what? You know you're actually not the ones who are making the calls here. It's us."

Paris Summit's AI Pinky Promises Aren't Enough

Paris played host to representatives from more than 100 countries to discuss the future of artificial intelligence this week. The result was a vague agreement signed by 60 of them that does almost nothing to help make the technology safer. The clue was in the name. The international meeting series, founded in the UK as an "AI Safety Summit" in 2023, became known as an "AI Action Summit" when it came to Paris. President Emmanuel Macron used it as a springboard to announce a €109 billion ($113 billion) investment in AI and make a pitch to the world for French tech.

Paris AI Summit: US and UK refuse to sign agreement on 'safe' and 'inclusive' AI as J D Vance sends warning - SiliconANGLE

Paris AI Summit: US and UK refuse to sign agreement on 'safe' and 'inclusive' AI as J D Vance sends warning At the landmark AI Summit today in Paris, the U.S. and U.K. went against the general tenor of the meeting when both countries rebuffed signing a declaration on "inclusive and sustainable" AI. Officials from the Trump administration expressed reservations about signing the agreement, a communique that wants to ensure countries develop AI that is "sustainable for people and the planet" and is "open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for all." 60 nations did sign, including France, China, India, Japan, Australia and Canada. The U.S.'s confirmation of the refusal came after vice-president, JD Vance (pictured), made a speech on the stage at the Grand Palais. In what was his first speech on foreign soil since Trump's victory, Vance expressed that the U.S. will lead the way in AI development while he warned about "authoritarian" regimes' use of AI. Read: China. "Some of us in this room have learned from experience partnering with them means chaining your nation to an authoritarian master that seeks to infiltrate, dig in and seize your information infrastructure," he said. "Should a deal seem too good to be true, just remember the old adage that we learned in Silicon Valley, if you aren't paying for the product: you are the product." Vance also warned about European-style regulation, which he said would stifle development, leaving other nations - read: China - to get ahead. "The Trump administration will ensure that the most powerful A.I. systems are built in the U.S. with American design and manufactured chips," he said, but he added, "Just because we are the leader doesn't mean we want to or need to go it alone." He compared AI advances to the invention of the steam engine, calling it a "new industrial revolution" but warned, "It will never come to pass if overregulation deters innovators from taking the risks necessary to advance the ball." He also expressed that the Trump administration will "ensure that AI systems developed in America are free from ideological bias," and that the U.S. government under Trump will "never restrict our citizens' right to free speech." While Vance alluded to a threat of China and made a plea for European backing, a spokesperson from the U.K. government told the media the snub of the AI agreement "is not about the U.S." He explained, "We didn't feel it sufficiently addressed broader questions around national security and the challenge that AI poses to it." He added, "This is about our own national interest" and he "wasn't aware" of the U.S.'s reason for not signing. French President Emmanuel Macron said Europe is taking the "third way" relating to AI development, that of tight rules and public funding, as the U.S. goes all out on lax regulations within the free-market approach and China puts development firmly in the hands of the state. Meanwhile, Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing expressed that Beijing wants to play a part in setting global AI regulations and help build "a community with a shared future for mankind." China's equal access vision and the country's fairly recent release of the open-source DeepSeek chatbot are seen by its critics as a threat, a way for Beijing to spread its influence in the world.

Paris AI Summit: US, UK refuse to sign agreement on 'safe' and 'inclusive' AI as JD Vance sends warning - SiliconANGLE

Paris AI Summit: US, UK refuse to sign agreement on 'safe' and 'inclusive' AI as JD Vance sends warning At the landmark AI Summit today in Paris, the U.S. and U.K. went against the general tenor of the meeting when both countries refused to sign a declaration on "inclusive and sustainable" artificial intelligence. Officials from the Trump administration expressed reservations about signing the agreement. It's a communique aimed at ensuring countries develop AI that is "sustainable for people and the planet" and is "open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for all." Sixty nations did sign, including France, China, India, Japan, Australia and Canada. The United States' confirmation of the refusal came after Vice President JD Vance (pictured) made a speech on the stage at the Grand Palais. In what was his first speech on foreign soil since Trump's victory, Vance expressed that the U.S. will lead the way in AI development while he warned about "authoritarian" regimes' use of AI. Read: China. "Some of us in this room have learned from experience partnering with them means chaining your nation to an authoritarian master that seeks to infiltrate, dig in and seize your information infrastructure," he said. "Should a deal seem too good to be true, just remember the old adage that we learned in Silicon Valley, if you aren't paying for the product: You are the product." Vance also warned about European-style regulation, which he said would stifle development, allowing other nations such as China to get ahead. "The Trump administration will ensure that the most powerful AI systems are built in the U.S. with American design and manufactured chips," he said, but added, "Just because we are the leader doesn't mean we want to or need to go it alone." He compared AI advances to the invention of the steam engine, calling it a "new industrial revolution" but warned, "It will never come to pass if overregulation deters innovators from taking the risks necessary to advance the ball." He also expressed that the Trump administration will "ensure that AI systems developed in America are free from ideological bias," and that the U.S. government under Trump will "never restrict our citizens' right to free speech." Though Vance alluded to a threat of China and made a plea for European backing, a spokesperson from the U.K. government told the media the snub of the AI agreement "is not about the U.S." He explained, "We didn't feel it sufficiently addressed broader questions around national security and the challenge that AI poses to it. This is about our own national interest." He added that he "wasn't aware" of the U.S.'s reason for not signing. French President Emmanuel Macron said Europe is taking the "third way" relating to AI development, that of tight rules and public funding, as the U.S. goes all-out on lax regulations within the free-market approach and China puts development firmly in the hands of the state. Meanwhile, Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing expressed that Beijing wants to play a part in setting global AI regulations and help build "a community with a shared future for mankind." China's equal access vision and the country's fairly recent release of the open-source DeepSeek chatbot are seen by its critics as a threat, a way for Beijing to spread its influence in the world.

US and UK decline to sign international agreement for ethical AI

The US and the UK have declined to sign the final statement of a French-hosted artificial intelligence summit that called for inclusive, ethical, and safe development of the technology. The US vice president strongly criticized European AI regulations as massive and potentially stifling innovation while rejecting content moderation as "authoritarian censorship." Meanwhile, the British government indicated it had concerns about specific language in the agreement, noting that the approach differed significantly from its own AI safety summit held in 2023, according to Reuters. Participants from over 100 countries, including government leaders, international organizations, academics and researchers, gathered in Paris on Feb. 10 and 11 at the AI Action Summit. Key priorities established at the summit included improving AI accessibility, ensuring AI is ethical, safe, and trustworthy, promoting innovation while preventing market concentration, using AI to positively impact labor markets, making AI environmentally sustainable, and strengthening international cooperation on AI governance. Sixty countries signed the statement, which included calling for the launch of a public-interest AI platform and incubator and the creation of a network of "observatories" to study its impact on jobs and workplaces. However, the US and UK were not among those signing on. Restricting the development of AI now "would mean paralyzing one of the most promising technologies we have seen in generations," US Vice President JD Vance said at the summit. "We believe that excessive regulation of the AI sector could kill a transformative industry just as it is taking off." "We feel very strongly that AI must remain free from ideological bias and that American AI will not be co-opted into a tool for authoritarian censorship," he added. Experts, including Russell Wald from the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, interpreted this as an "unequivocal shift" in US policy toward accelerated innovation over safety concerns. "Safety is not going to be the primary focus, but instead, it's going to be accelerated innovation and the belief that the technology is an opportunity, and safety equals regulation, regulation equals losing that opportunity," he told Reuters in a Feb. 11 report. Related: EU AI rules stifle innovation, Meta and Spotify CEOs warn The European Union's AI Act took effect in August, introducing the world's first comprehensive regulatory framework governing the technology. In September, the EU, the US, the UK and several other countries signed a landmark AI safety treaty called the Framework Convention on AI, addressing human rights and democratic values as key to regulating public and private-sector AI models. However, soon after taking office in January, President Donald Trump axed the Biden administration's executive order establishing a framework for AI, which included reporting mechanisms for companies.

US, UK Reject Paris Declaration on 'Inclusive and Sustainable' AI

Without American involvement, the U.K. could also pull out of the declaration. At previous AI summits in the U.K. and South Korea, participant governments negotiated joint declarations committing to shared goals and principles. However, at this week's Paris Summit, the first since Donald Trump entered the White House, American objection to a pledge to work toward "inclusive and sustainable AI" threatens to derail any formal declaration. American Resistance to AI Declaration Given Trump's disdain for anything that might be perceived as threatening American sovereignty, getting the U.S. to enter even a non-binding international agreement on AI under his watch was always going to be a challenge. Moreover, the Bletchley and Seoul declarations have already articulated the basic principles of AI safety. Therefore, any next step toward international consensus needs to be more concrete. According to Politico , the U.S. delegation has pushed back against key aspects of the draft Paris Declaration, which reportedly includes a commitment to "inclusive and sustainable AI" and "making AI sustainable for people and the planet." U.K. May Follow U.S. Lead Politico reported that the U.K. could also pull out, as the U.S. is likely to reject any diplomatic declaration that references sustainability or inclusion. On Monday, Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said that although "we're engaging fully with the French," who are leading negotiations, the U.S. is an "unignorable force." "When you see the trends in AI, it is that the trends are being set by the power of the technology itself, and America is adapting to those realities in the same way that we are," he added. According to people close to the negotiations, by mid-afternoon, with just hours to go before the summit's end, neither the U.S. nor the U.K. looked likely to sign the declaration. Diplomacy in the Age of Trump The EU, the U.S., the U.K., Australia, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore signed previous AI declarations. However, without the participation of the U.S. and the U.K., the Paris Declaration risks losing much of its weight as an instrument for international policy-making. Nevertheless, European leaders have used the Paris Summit to hint at a realignment of the international order in the Trump era. During his address at the event, France's President Emmanuel Macron suggested that the country's nuclear and renewable energy resources would help it attract fresh AI investment. Referencing Trump's pro-oil inauguration speech, Macron said: "I have a good friend on the other side of the ocean saying 'drill, baby, drill.' Here, there is no need to drill. It's plug, baby, plug. Electricity is available." Against this backdrop of transatlantic competition, it is clear that the emphasis on AI safety that characterized previous summits has waned. As Vice President JD Vance put it at the event on Tuesday, "I'm not here this morning to talk about AI safety [...] I'm here to talk about AI opportunity."

United Kingdom and United States refuse to sign Paris AI summit declaration

During the second day of the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit, the United Kingdom and the United States chose not to sign an international declaration on artificial intelligence, a move that underscores widening global divisions over the technology's governance. While 60 signatories on Tuesday pledged to promote AI in an "open" and "ethical" manner, officials from the United Kingdom cited national interests, and United States Vice President JD Vance warned against excessive regulation, arguing it could stifle innovation. His remarks stood in contrast to French President Emmanuel Macron, who advocated for stronger oversight. The decision raises questions about the credibility of the United Kingdom's past leadership on AI safety, especially after hosting its own AI Safety Summit in 2023. Meanwhile, the broader geopolitical landscape is shifting, with trade tensions between the United States and Europe adding further complexity to discussions on AI policy. For now, it remains to be seen how this divergence will shape the future of artificial intelligence regulation.

U.S. and Britain snub international AI accord in Paris

U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaking at the AI Action Summit in Paris, France, on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025. The United States and Britain refused to sign an international declaration on artificial intelligence at France's AI Action Summit. The Paris AI summit's communique, entitled "Statement on Inclusive and Sustainable Artificial Intelligence," showed both the U.S. and U.K. were absent from the list of signatories. The U.S. declined to give a clear reason for why it didn't sign the declaration Tuesday. A U.K. government spokesperson said that, while London agreed to sign commitments on sustainability and cybersecurity at the AI summit, it "felt the declaration didn't provide enough practical clarity on global governance, nor sufficiently address harder questions around national security and the challenge AI poses to it." "Security remains a vital part of AI's future and we look forward to continued discussions in this area," the spokesperson told CNBC via email. The document signed Tuesday commits signatories to "ensuring AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for all."

Why the UK didn't sign up to global AI agreement

World leaders and tech bros descended on Paris this week, with some determined to show a united stance on artificial intelligence. But at the end of the two-day summit, the UK and the US walked away empty-handed, having refused to sign a global declaration on AI. Earlier on Tuesday, US vice president JD Vance told his audience in Paris that too much regulation could "kill a transformative industry just as it's taking off" and Donald Trump has already signed an executive order removing rules imposed by Joe Biden. But for the UK, the declaration did go far enough. "The declaration didn't provide enough practical clarity on global governance and [didn't] sufficiently address harder questions around national security," said a UK government spokesperson. So what is the UK government so concerned everyone is missing? Aside from taking jobs and stealing data, there are other existential threats to worry about, according to Carsten Jung, the head of AI at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR). He listed the ways AI can be dangerous, from enabling hackers to break into computer systems to losing control of AI bots that "run wild" on the internet to even helping terrorists to create bioweapons. "This isn't science fiction," he said. One scientist in Paris warned the people most at risk of unregulated AI are those with the least to do with it. "For a lot of us, we're on our phones all the time and we want that to be less," said Dr Jen Schradie, an associate professor at Sciences Po University who sits on the International Panel on the Information Environment. "But for a lot of people who don't have regular, consistent [internet] access or have the skills and even the time to post content, those voices are left out of everything." They are left out of the data sets fed into AI, as well as the solutions proposed by it, to workforces, healthcare and more, according to Dr Schradie. Read more from science, climate and technology: Ozempic helps to reduce alcohol consumption and smoking Beavers could help tackle Britain's rising flooding problems Elon Musk denies 'hostile takeover' of US government Without making these risks a priority, some of the attendees in Paris worry governments will chase after bigger and better AI, without ever addressing the consequences. "The only thing they say about how they're going to achieve safety is 'we're going to have an open and inclusive process', which is completely meaningless," said Professor Stuart Russell, a scientist from the University of California at Berkeley who was in Paris. "A lot of us who are concerned about the safety of AI systems were pretty disappointed." One expert compared unregulated AI to unregulated food and medicine. "When we think about food, about medicines and [...] aircraft, there is an international consensus that countries specify what they think their people need," said Michael Birtwistle from the Ada Lovelace Institute. "Instead of a sense of an approach that slowly rolls these things out, tries to understand the risks first and then scales, we're seeing these [AI] products released directly to market." And when these AI products are released, they're extremely popular. Just two months after it launched, ChatGPT was estimated to have reached 100 million monthly active users, making it the fastest-growing app in history. A global phenomenon needs a global solution, according to Mr Jung. "If we all race ahead and try to come first as fast as possible and are not jointly managing the risks, bad things can happen," he said.

UK and US refuse to sign international AI declaration

The UK and US have not signed an international agreement on artificial intelligence (AI) at a global summit in Paris. The statement, signed by France, China and India among other countries, pledges an "open", "inclusive" and "ethical" approach to the technology's development. Discussions at the AI Action Summit in Paris have focused on the impact of AI on society and the environment - and what action is needed to capture its benefits and prevent its risks. The US and UK have not explained their reasons for not being signatories. But earlier US Vice President JD Vance told delegates in Paris that too much regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) could "kill a transformative industry just as it's taking off".

The new AI arms race

If the first global AI summit 15 months ago, hosted by Britain's then prime minister Rishi Sunak, focused more on co-operation to tackle the risks of AI, the latest this week in Paris highlighted a shift in the dynamics: towards geopolitical competition, and the quest for technological and economic advantage. On his first foreign trip as US vice-president, JD Vance signalled that the US was ripping out the brakes and putting its foot to the floor to develop AI. The US, and the UK, did not sign up to a closing statement that said AI should be "inclusive, transparent, ethical and safe". A new AI arms race has begun, with the US and China vying for dominance and Europe trying to carve out its role. The Trump administration, said Vance, intended to cement US leadership and ensure that the "most powerful AI systems are built in the US, with American-designed and manufactured chips". In a jibe at Europe's legislate-first approach, he said regulatory regimes had to "foster the creation of AI technology rather than strangle it"; the US would not tolerate foreign governments "tightening the screws on US companies". Without naming China, Vance also warned against signing AI deals with an "authoritarian master". The vice-president was speaking days after the director of the US AI Safety Institute stood down, raising uncertainty over its future. Donald Trump has also revoked President Joe Biden's 2023 executive order calling for top AI companies to share information with the US government. The new US stance, says one academic, is a "180-degree turnaround" from Biden's. That strategic shift has coincided with a tilting of the balance of AI power. US confidence in its technological lead has been rattled by China's DeepSeek, an AI model apparently developed more cheaply and with far less computing power than US counterparts. For now, China is seeking to play both sides. It is engaging with the EU on the global regulatory agenda. But it is also investing heavily in overcoming restrictions on its access to advanced microchips -- and challenging US hegemony in AI. Europe is still striving to assert itself as a player in the global AI race, and an alternative to the US and China. Some European executives have touted DeepSeek -- along with France's Mistral -- as evidence that cheaper, open-source models could provide an opportunity for the continent. French President Emmanuel Macron, who hosted the conference, spoke in favour of open, shared AI platforms, criticised closed US models and announced big investments in AI infrastructure in France. But, while EU rules may not be quite as stifling as the US vice-president claims, Europe has other obstacles -- including a shortage of "blitzscaling" capital to rapidly build out start-ups. Britain has denied that its own puzzling failure -- as the organiser of the first AI summit -- to sign the final communique, when 57 countries including China and India plus the EU did so, reflected a decision to side with the Trump White House. The government insists it was because the statement did not provide enough "practical clarity" on global AI governance or address "harder questions" on national security. Whichever is true, the case for collaborative governance of the new technology -- especially the goal of human-level intelligence -- is powerful, given its vast potential benefits and risks. No one would wish to see its development strangled by excessive regulation, or an authoritarian China become dominant. But America's apparent readiness to dismantle guardrails that were being put in place represents a bold, potentially reckless, bet -- that it can master this game-changing technology first, without anything going wrong along the way.

Trump refuses to sign global AI declaration, calls for 'optimism over fear'

TL;DR: At the AI Action Summit in Paris, the Trump administration declined to sign a global declaration promoting ethical AI development, citing concerns over excessive regulation. At the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris, the Trump administration refused to sign a global declaration that aims to encourage the "open," "inclusive," and "ethical" development of AI. Much of the summit's discussions centered on AI regulation, with French President Emmanuel Macron stressing the need for clear ground rules to ensure the safe advancement of the technology. "We need these rules for AI to move forward," he stated. French President Macron at the AI Action Summit in Paris (Credit: Benoit Tessier, Reuters) Dozens of countries, including China, India, and France, signed the declaration. However, the US and UK opposed what they viewed as over-regulation of an emerging industry. US Vice President JD Vance defended the decision, stating: "Too much regulation could kill a transformative industry just as it's taking off." "[Leaders] should look to this new frontier with optimism, rather than trepidation." Vance emphasized that AI presents an opportunity the Trump administration will not squander, arguing that policies should prioritize growth over safety concerns. Vice President Vance speaks at the Paris AI Summit (Credit: Michel Euler / Associated Press) The UK's decision not to sign the agreement faced internal criticism. Andrew Dudfield, head of London fact-checking firm Full Fact, warned: "By refusing to sign today's international AI Action Statement, the UK government risks undercutting its hard-won credibility as a world leader for safe, ethical, and trustworthy AI innovation." Heading into the summit, it was well-known that the US would take an 'America First' approach to AI policy, emphasizing the importance of maintaining global leadership in the space. The US administration agreed with much of the declaration but argued it lacked key considerations." "We felt the declaration didn't provide enough practical clarity on global governance, nor did it sufficiently address critical issues like national security and the challenges AI poses to it," a government spokesperson said.

Keir Starmer Rejects Claims UK Will Mirror US AI Deregulation at Paris AI Summit

However, the event demonstrated that world leaders have heard Washington's call for a more relaxed approach to AI regulation. On Tuesday, Feb. 11, the U.S. and the U.K. opted not to sign a joint declaration on "inclusive and sustainable" artificial intelligence at the Paris AI Summit. Some observers suggested the move could signal a new direction for the U.K. that is more in line with the American approach under President Trump. However, the government has sought to downplay the notion that it is simply following the U.S. lead. Paris Declaration Lacks 'Practical Clarity' Claims U.K. Government Explaining the decision not to sign the Paris "Statement on Inclusive and Sustainable Artificial Intelligence for People and Planet," a government spokesperson cited by the Guardian said: "We felt the declaration didn't provide enough practical clarity on global governance, nor sufficiently address harder questions around national security and the challenge AI poses to it." The statement dodges the question of whether the U.K. agrees with the declaration's principles. The lack of clear commitments is also a poor excuse not to sign. While they contained some voluntary commitments, the Bletchley and Seoul Declarations were also short on concrete proposals. Starmer Unaware of U.S. Position Asked by the Guardian if the government had declined to sign because it wanted to follow the American lead, the spokesperson for Keir Starmer said they were "not aware of the U.S. reasons or position" on the declaration. However, the move's significance is difficult not to see in light of the current mood in Washington, where the Trump administration has been critical of European regulatory zeal. Speaking on Tuesday, Vice President JD Vance decried "excessive regulation" in the EU. He even took the opportunity to call out the Digital Services Act and General Data Protection Regulation, which impose strict rules and liabilities on American tech businesses. Regulation Out of Fashion in Paris Unlike past summits, which saw world leaders united in their calls for regulatory action to prevent AI harm, AI safety took a backseat in Paris. A major topic of conversation was European competitiveness. Led by French President Emmanuel Macron, policymakers across the continent called for a less restrictive business environment to promote innovation. Even Brussels' top officials read the room, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pledging to cut red tape at the EU level during her speech at the event.

US and UK not among signatories of Paris AI summit declaration

Two countries have not immediately explained reasons for not signing communique The US and the UK have reportedly not signed the Paris AI summit's declaration on "inclusive and sustainable" artificial intelligence. The communique states that among priorities are "ensuring AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for all" and "making AI sustainable for people and the planet". The US and the UK did not immediately explain their reasons for not being signatories. The Élysée Palace said it was possible that more countries could sign the declaration in the hours after the event.

US, UK Decline to Sign Onto Macron's AI Summit Communique

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.