WEF president calls for an algorithm to control other algorithms to benefit humankind

World Economic Forum (WEF) president Børge Brende suggests that there should be an algorithm above other algorithms in order to better serve humankind.

Speaking at the Doha Forum in Qatar during a session on “The Geopolitics of Artificial Intelligence” over the weekend, Brende said that China and the US have realized that whomever comes out on top with AI will be the most powerful nation, and there should be an algorithm to keep other algorithms in check for the sake of humankind.

“These are superpowers without super powers, and they know that the future superpower is GenAI, and GenAI can be a force for good; it can increase productivity with 10 percent in the coming decade — that’s a lot of prosperity, but I think it’s a good idea that the humans are on top of the algorithms and not the algorithms on top of the humans,” said the WEF president.

“I think we need an agreement on the algorithm above the algorithms, maybe an algorithm that can control that the algorithms do work in the interest of humankind,” he added.

While recognizing the potential of AI to create productivity and prosperity in the world, Brende also said that one of the downsides is the trillions of dollars lost to cybercrime, and that China and the US should come to regulatory agreements to combat that.

“I see that the power of AI can be so much for good, something that nuclear weapons have never been, but we have to make sure we don’t lose the baby with the bathwater,” said Brende.

“And $10 trillion USD can be lost annually in cybercrime by 2025, and I think both China and the US have to agree that that is not a good use of money — that should be stopped now,” he added.

While the US and China battle for AI supremacy, the WEF president said he was concerned about the “global south” being left behind, especially Africa, where only 20 percent of the population has internet access and large swaths still don’t have reliable electricity.

“In Africa, 20 percent of the population have access to internet,” said Brende.

“How can you then be part of this revolution? One thing is you don’t have access to electricity, then you don’t have access to the internet,” he added.

With developed nations and big tech platforms being the “winners” in the AI race, Brende turned back to the US and China, stating:

“I do hope that there is enough self-interest, and they do see that it is in their self-interest from the big players to agree on some traffic rules.”

Apart from regulations and competition between the US and China, another key point concerning the geopolitics of AI was how to power data centers and where that power was coming from.

You can find out more about that in our follow-up story: here.

Image Source: Screenshot of WEF President Børge Brende, Doha Forum YouTube