he U.S. State Department is set to convene the first meeting of signatories to an artificial intelligence agreement this week. The meeting is set to focus on artificial intelligence and its military applications, which is an issue of international interest, according to Fox News Digital.
Mark Montgomery — the senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation for the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies — said that “[i]t is commendable that the State Department is continuing to push forward on the discussions concerning ethical use of AI in military applications.”
“I do not try to read too much into this, as it is basically a voluntary grouping of a hodgepodge of nations. This is about information sharing not policymaking. Most clearly, the countries whose military applications of AI should worry us the most are not present.”
The U.S. managed to get 53 nations to sign the Political Declaration on Responsible Military Use of Artificial Intelligence and Autonomy in 2023. Still, several key countries are missing, including Brazil, China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and India.
Of the signatories, 42 are expected to attend this week’s conference. The report mentioned that more than 100 participants from military and diplomatic backgrounds will discuss all the military applications of AI that have manifested over the past years.
One senior State Department official said: “We really want to have a system to keep states focused on the issue of responsible AI and really focused on building practical capacity.”
The State Department published the goal of the declaration in 2023, writing: “The Political Declaration on Responsible Military Use of Artificial Intelligence and Autonomy provides a normative framework addressing the use of these capabilities in the military domain.”
“Launched in February 2023 at the Responsible AI in the Military Domain Summit (REAIM 2023) in the Hague, the Declaration aims to build international consensus around responsible behavior and guide states’ development, deployment, and use of military AI. The Declaration provides a basis for exchanging best practices and building states’ capacities, which will allow endorsing states to share experience and ideas.”
Vice President Kamala Harris made the following statement on November 1, 2023, regarding the declaration: “Fundamentally, it is our belief that technology with global impact deserves global action.
