Page 11 - AI Governance Day - From Principles to Implementation

AI Governance Day - From Principles to Implementation

AI Governance Day – From

Principles to Implementation

0� Executive Summary

The first ever "AI Governance Day" subtitled "From Principles to Implementation" was held in Geneva,
Switzerland, on 29 May 2024. Convened by the United Nations' International Telecommunication
Union (ITU), the event brought together a kaleidoscope of participants from around the world. This
included government leaders, policymakers, researchers, and technologists from both developed
and developing countries. The event's multistakeholder composition aligned with ITU's mission to
provide an inclusive, neutral, and globally representative platform for artificial intelligence (AI). The
day was marked by vibrant discussions and collaborations aimed at transforming AI governance
principles into actionable frameworks.
In the area of AI, the transition from principles to actionable governance is a challenge. These
principles, while vital, have remained at a high level, often too abstract in their application for direct
application in the ever-evolving AI landscape.
Recently, a significant shift has been observed, as regulatory bodies worldwide have begun to
codify these principles into concrete regulations, creating foreseeable regulatory pressure on the
development of AI. For example, China has instituted an Algorithm Registry in December 2022,
and in October 2023, the President of the United States issued an "Executive Order on the Safe,
Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence". The European Union AI
Act has perhaps gone furthest: it is set to enter into force in the second half of 2024 and to become
progressively enforceable over a 36-month period.
In the rapidly evolving landscape of AI, an "AI governance paradox" has emerged: while regulation
is often seen as lagging behind technological advancements, there is an equally critical yet less
recognized issue where the current state of technology and tools available does not allow for
monitoring, checking, and controlling AI systems. This gap poses risks and underscores the need
for advancing tools capable of ensuring effective governance.
"AI Governance Day" tackled the step of moving from regulatory frameworks to implementation. How
are countries and regions navigating the dual objectives of maximizing AI's benefits while minimizing
its risks? Participants shared experiences on what works, what does not work (yet), identified hurdles,
and discussed what needs to happen next on the path towards effective regulatory implementation.
The first half of AI Governance Day – the morning sessions – were interactive and dynamic discussions
among 200 senior leaders from governments, the private sector, international organizations,
academia, the technical community, and civil society.
Three themes were discussed:
• Theme 1: What is the landscape of AI governance, and how will it evolve?
This report highlights the debate at the session about national vs. regional and
international AI governance and includes a listing of the major multilateral as well as
national initiatives as of the end of May 2024 – please see Chapter 4.3.1.
• Theme 2: How do we implement AI governance frameworks?
The session discussed how technical standards wuold be an important piece in
measuring whether AI governance frameworks are successfully implemented. As the
report highlights, the current technical methods are often insufficient to measure the
implementation of AI governance frameworks and to provide feedback. The report then
goes deeper into "compute governance", arguably an area where measurements can
be more straightforward and quantifiable as opposed to the governance of data or the
governance of algorithms.

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