On 9 November 2023, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM), participated in the OECD Global Parliamentary Group on AI Meeting, gathering leading experts in Paris.

PAM was represented by Hon. Abdelouahab Yagoubi, member of the Algerian Parliament and PAM Rapporteur on Artificial Intelligence.

This meeting on the future of AI was structured around three main future scenarios: 1/ whether AI will be used by a wide public with its associated risks of abuse and misinformation; 2/  whether AI will remain in the hands of a few companies in advanced economies with the risk to create a chasm between advanced and developing economies, and  3/ whether to impose a strict regulatory framework or moratorium for advanced AI on the basis of safety and ethical criteria, with the risk to hamper the general open development of AI.

Experts included representatives from multinational corporations such as META, Google, Microsoft, IBM and NEC, as well as Amazon, Deloitte, Telefonica, and AI-centered institutes, such as the Alan Turin Institute, Oxford, Duke universities and the European University Institute. The World Bank, the UNESCO and UN Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights were also present alongside representatives of the European Commission and members of the European Parliament.  The meeting was an opportunity to present the OECD Common Guideposts to Promote Interoperability in AI Risk Management, with the aim to develop a common understanding of the AI risk and accountability landscape, and the ultimate objective of operationalising the OECD AI Principles and OECD instruments on responsible business conduct (RBC) in the AI sector.

PAM delegates have debated over the years threats and opportunities posed by a rapidly evolving AI technology, in particular with regard to surveillance and invasion of privacy, fraud, and other violations of human rights, as well as with the dangers of AI instrumentalization to biaise information and distort reality.

PAM’s concerns are twofold: 1/parliaments need to be protected and well equipped in the wake of ever-increasing volumes of fake news, misinformation, and disinformation, and 2/parliamentarians need to protect their administrations and citizens through timely legislative action to match the rapid evolution of AI technologies, and its malicious use by third parties.

AI must be harnessed responsibly and made accessible to all, including the developing countries.

PAM fully supports the recent launch of the UN High-Level multi-stakeholders Advisory Body on AI. Moreover, at the request of the UN, PAM is undertaking research on the effects on international security and stability of the malicious application and lack of regulation of the cyberspace and the dark web. //