China to submit UN draft resolution on AI cooperation

BEIJING: China will submit a draft resolution to the United Nations calling for stronger international cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI), Beijing’s foreign minister said Thursday.

The rapid development of AI has become a topic of global concern, turbocharged by the 2022 launch of ChatGPT, a generative programme by the US-based OpenAI that can pen stories, create pictures, write computer code and more from simple text prompts.

It has triggered a craze for other generative products — including many in China — but has also fostered anxiety around the world over the technology’s potential for abuse.

Speaking during a press conference at China’s Two Sessions legislative meetings on Thursday, foreign minister Wang Yi said Beijing would introduce a draft resolution on “strengthening international cooperation in artificial intelligence capacity building” to the UN General Assembly.

He did not disclose specific information about the resolution’s contents nor say when the submission would occur.

The move would “push all parties to strengthen the sharing of technology and strive to bridge the intelligence gap so that no country will be left behind”, Wang said.

“Artificial intelligence has entered a critical stage of explosive development. Our proposition is to pay equal attention to development and security,” he added.

“We must not only embrace new things and opportunities, but also install brakes.”