The 78th Session of the UN General Assembly recently passed a resolution focusing on bridging the gap in Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology between developed and developing countries. Introduced by China, the resolution aims to enhance international cooperation in capacity-building for AI to ensure that developing countries can benefit from the socioeconomic advancements offered by these technologies.
China emphasized that while AI has the potential to greatly impact the development of nations, many developing countries are not fully benefiting from these opportunities, leading to an increase in the global digital divide. The resolution highlights the importance of collaboration in AI through activities like knowledge sharing, securing public and private funding, and providing capacity-building support for developing nations. It also stresses the need for ethical AI systems that respect human rights and international laws, although military applications of AI were not addressed in the resolution.
The UN resolution calls on the international community to promote fair business environments and cooperation, encouraging member states to incorporate capacity-building for AI into their national development strategies. Governments, private sectors, media, academic institutions, and other stakeholders are urged to work together to reduce technology barriers and ensure equal access to AI advancements.
This resolution follows previous initiatives like the US-proposed Resolution 78/265 in March and the launch of global principles by the UN to combat misinformation and hate speech in June. The Secretary-General is set to provide a report on the challenges faced by developing countries regarding AI, with recommendations for addressing these issues. The Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence will also release a final report ahead of the upcoming UN Summit of the Future in September.
