In November 2024, A.I. experts from nine countries and the European Union met in San Francisco to launch the International Network of A.I. Safety Institutes. The Network hopes to enable its members to collaborate and share their technical expertise to understand the safety risks and mitigations associated with AI. It also hopes to support the development of principles and best practices across the globe to enable the benefits of A.I. to be enjoyed by countries throughout the world at all stages of development.

The Network was established by the U.S. secretary of commerce, Gina Raimondo, at the A.I. Seoul Summit in May 2024 and the founding principles were set out in the Seoul Statement of Intent toward International Cooperation on AI Safety Science, AI Seoul Summit 2024 (Annex) - GOV.UK.

“We affirm that safety is a key element in furtherance of responsible AI innovation.”

Ahead of the meeting, the Network developed these principles into a Mission Statement, which in turn identifies four areas of focus for the Network.

  1. Research: with the scientific community, to further research on the risks and capabilities of advanced A.I. systems and to share findings which will promote the science of A.I. safety.
  2. Testing: to form common practices for testing advanced A.I. systems, which may include collaborative testing exercises and the sharing of the results.
  3. Guidance: to circulate guidance on common approaches to (for example) testing, where it is appropriate to do so.
  4. Inclusion: to work with other stakeholders across the globe and share information widely (again, where appropriate to do so) to expand the scope of those participating in the science and practice of A.I. safety.

The initial members of the Network are Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Japan, Kenya, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States but it is clear that they are keen to widen this. Whilst Italy and Germany were signatories to the Seoul Statement, they were not confirmed as initial members of the Network and so may be obvious new recruits.

“Through this Network, we are dedicated to collaborating broadly with partners to ensure that safe, secure and trustworthy A.I. benefits for all humanity.” Mission Statement - International Network of AISIs.pdf

The Network will continue to make plans ahead of the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris in February 2025, which will provide further opportunity to promote and develop its work and communicate its message more widely.

If you would like to discuss how current or future regulations impact what you do with AI, please contact Tom Whittaker, Brian Wong, Lucy Pegler, Martin Cook,Liz Smith or any other member in our Technology team.

This article was written by Charlotte Hamilton.