GPAI Summit: India Aims for AI Declaration Document - PTI

New Delhi, Dec 11 (PTI) India will strive for consensus-based "declaration document" on the approach to AI opportunities and risk mitigation during the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) Summit, which will be inaugurated by the PM on Tuesday and entail multi-stakeholder deliberations around this new frontier of technology.

India, which has always championed democratisation of technology for the masses, will moot the use of AI for sustainable agriculture as well as a DPI-like collaborative structure for harnessing the power of Artificial Intelligence, Vaishnaw, the Minister of IT and Electronics, said.

Vaishnaw further said the world's view on AI is almost converging, with global recognition and awareness about its dangers as well as the transformative potential of this new technology.

The GPAI -- a multistakeholder initiative focused on nuances of AI -- has 28 member countries and the European Union (EU). China is not a part of GPAI.

As one of the founding members in 2020, and the lead chair for GPAI in 2024, India is hosting the Annual GPAI Summit in New Delhi from December 12-14, 2023.

The event will see participation of start ups, policy makers and academia, and have technical sessions on responsible AI. It will work towards a convergence of views on the harmonised way forward for AI.

The event will see stakeholders brainstorm and ideate on tapping opportunities and benefits of AI.

"Today, the world is looking up to India for technology solutions, and thought leadership on key issues like AI... where India's thinking is highly valued. Today, every major country wants to join hands with India for co-creation and development of technology," Vaishnaw told reporters.

India's digital stack solution has benefitted millions of people and DPI has been accepted G20 as a very important construct, Vaishnaw noted.

Vaishnaw said GPAI deliberations are expected to culminate into a declaration document, arrived at with "consensus".

"We are negotiating a declaration document, which we hope we will be able to arrive at some consensus," he said.

Today, the world's thinking on AI is almost converging, he said, adding that people understand its potential and benefits, as well as its dangers.

"And the entire world wants to put certain guardrails. So, there is more or less convergence of how AI should be treated, going forward," he said, adding that India will be aiming for a "statement" or declaration at the Summit.

It is pertinent to mention here that over the past months, global efforts are underway to govern AI, as nations move swiftly to manage dangers of this promising new technology.

Earlier this year, the Biden Administration in the US secured voluntary commitments from leading Artificial Intelligence companies to manage the risks posed by AI, and to help move toward safe, secure, and transparent development of AI technology.

In October, US President Joe Biden followed it up with an executive order with an aim to promote safe and secure development of AI.

A two-day AI Safety Summit in the UK ended on November 2 with what British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak termed was a "landmark" agreement by 28 countries, including India, on the shared responsibility to address risks associated with AI.

Vaishnaw on Monday said GPAI will look to bring together common thinking on AI.

"International forums typically strive to come up with document or policy direction which then becomes the way people start thinking," Vaishnaw said, citing examples like Delhi Declaration at the G20 Summit.

While some nations may prefer to opt for hard regulations, India's approach has been one of balancing innovation and regulation.

GPAI, he said, will focus on global approach to AI.

According to an official release, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the GPAI Summit, at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Multiple sessions on diverse topics like AI and global health, education and skilling, AI and data governance, and machine learning workshop, among others, will be organised during the summit.

Other attractions in the summit include Research Symposium, AI Gamechangers Award and India AI Expo.

The summit is expected to witness participation of 50-plus GPAI experts and more than 150 speakers from across the countries.

"Further, top AI gamechangers from across the world will participate in different events, including Intel, Reliance Jio, Google, Meta, AWS, Yotta, Netweb, Paytm, Microsoft, Mastercard, NIC, STPI, Immerse, Jio Haptik, Bhashini, etc," the release said.

Besides, students who are winners under YUVA AI initiative and start-ups will also be showcasing their AI models and solutions, the release added.