The UK government formed an AI task force to try to lead global regulation and development

The UK government has appointed tech investor and AI expert Ian Hogarth to lead the UK AI Foundation Model Working Group, which will focus on advancing AI safety research in the coming months and preparing for the first Global AI Security Summit in the UK later this year.

The UK is trying to play the role of an AI powerhouse.

On June 18, local time, the British government announced that technology investor and artificial intelligence (AI) expert Ian Hogarth will lead the British AI Foundation Model Taskforce to study the security risks posed by artificial intelligence.

Hogarth will report directly to British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Science, Innovation and Technology Cabinet Secretary Chloe Smith. Under his leadership, the working group will focus on advancing AI safety research in the coming months and preparing for the inaugural Global AI Security Summit in the UK later this year.

On June 11, Sunak said he wanted the UK to become a global stronghold for AI regulation. "I want the UK to be not only a knowledge hub, but a global geographic centre for AI safety regulation," he said with encouragement. On June 12, Sunak tweeted that it was working with artificial intelligence research and development institutions DeepMind, OpenAI and Anthropic. The big model developers agreed to let the UK government prioritize the inspection of their AI language models to ensure privacy and security.

Establish AI security and development leadership

"As one of the UK's leading figures in tech, we are delighted to have Ian leading our expert working group, giving us the authority and agility to build our leadership in AI security and development." Sunak said.

The UK government has appointed tech investor and AI expert Ian Hogarth to lead the UK AI Foundation Model Working Group.

Ian Hogarth is a visiting professor at University College London, a well-known angel investor in the field of AI in the UK, and founded the venture capital fund Plural. At the age of 25, he co-founded internet music company Songkick and was backed by famed startup incubator Y Combinator, which was sold to Warner Music in 2017. Since 2018, Hogarth has researched and written the Annual State of Artificial Intelligence Report with another investor, Nathan Benaich.

Announcing Hogarth's appointment, Sunak said it was "our responsibility to safely develop new AI technologies for our children and grandchildren."

The UK government announced in April that it will invest 100 million pounds (about 920 million yuan) in initial funding to establish a basic model working group, which will bring together experts from government, industry and academia to study ways to safely develop artificial intelligence and inform the development of international safety standards. "Our Foundation Models Working Group will steer cutting-edge AI solutions in a responsible and ethical direction and ensure the UK is at the forefront of using this transformative technology for growth and future-proof the economy," Smith said. ”

In just over 3 months, the UK has made frequent moves in the layout of artificial intelligence. In March, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt said he would spend £1 billion on AI and supercomputing research and development over five years.

In May, Sunak met with the heads of DeepMind, OpenAI and other institutions to discuss the AI regulatory framework. According to the British "Times" reported on June 3, the British government is considering modeled on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to establish a global artificial intelligence regulator in London to "lead the world" in research or regulation. On June 6, at the OECD Science and Technology Forum funded by the British government, the United Kingdom held talks on artificial intelligence with senior officials from the United States, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Israel and other countries, seeking to establish a "united front".

On June 7, Sunak said during a meeting with US President Joe Biden in Washington that the United Kingdom will host the world's first AI security summit this fall. On June 8, Sunak and Biden issued the Atlantic Declaration, announcing that they were seeking to establish new innovation partnerships and agreed to strengthen cooperation in areas such as artificial intelligence.

"It will not be easy for the UK to lead global AI regulation"

After the UK left the EU in January 2020, emerging technologies appear to be a key battleground between the UK and Europe. "Sunak is trying to play an influential role in the debate about artificial intelligence, but the reality may not be the way he wants." Mujtaba Rahman, managing director of Europe at think tank Eurasia Group, said in an interview with NPR, "The EU has been a leader in the field of artificial intelligence (regulation), and US officials have signed relevant agreements with EU officials. ”

According to Politico, a US political news website, Britain has been excluded from key conversations between the EU and the US after Brexit. Therefore, Sunak sought more direct channels, such as introducing the topic during talks with Biden at the White House on June 8.

Asked why other countries would expect "mid-sized countries" like the UK to take the lead, Sunak said, "This mid-sized country happens to be a global leader in AI." In the Western world, you'd be hard-pressed to find countries other than the U.S. that have more expertise and talent in AI. We are the natural place to guide the conversation, and that's what I've heard from CEOs. ”

The UK is home to several important AI R&D institutions, including DeepMind, which developed AlphaGo and AlphaFold, which was recently merged with Google Brain to become Google DeepMind. The UK is also home to many excellent universities and welcomes the highly skilled expatriate workforce needed by AI companies.

A British government adviser told Politico that the UK believes that the EU and the US have already established systems in the field of artificial intelligence, and that the UK aims to compete for technical leadership roles beyond that. "We will bring in all parties at the same time, as third parties outside these two groups, to make their voices heard." That is, Britain's new positioning is to balance between a "tough EU" and a "less intrusive US."

However, the Financial Times pointed out that it will not be easy for the UK to lead global AI regulation.

First, the UK's plan is incomplete. In a March 2023 white paper, the UK government laid out an approach to AI regulation, but was criticized for being loose, outdated, and cumbersome.

Second, the US and the EU may not be happy with it. During his visit to the United States, Sunak tried to persuade Biden to support the UK's leading role in global AI regulation, but it did not seem to work well.

Third, many parties have already begun to act on the regulatory front. For example, on June 14, the European Parliament passed a draft law on the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), which requires companies such as OpenAI and Google to conduct risk assessments and disclose the copyright of data used to train generative AI. This move puts the EU at the forefront of AI regulation.