EDITORIAL
Technopower, the global state
Alex Rodriguez
On November 17, Silicon Valley could not help but remember when Steve Jobs was fired from Apple, the company he co-founded. That day, unexpected news shook the technological valley: the board of directors of Open AI fired its executive director and co-founder, Sam Altman, one of the gurus of the sector. All of this occurred on the eve of the anniversary of the successful launch of its chatbot ChatGPT, which relaunched interest in artificial intelligence.
If it took Jobs eleven years to return to Apple to bring it out of ruin and turn it into the successful company it is today, it took Altman four days to return to OpenAI. Of course, with a new board of directors. 700 of the company’s 770 workers had threatened to leave. In the struggle for power, according to analysts, the sector of this startup in favor of expanding the commercial offer without taking security into account won. Artificial intelligence (AI) returns to Vanguardia Dossier, which analyzes a technopower that is transforming everything.
ChatGPT is just the tip of the iceberg of this revolution in which technology companies exercise the same type of power previously reserved for nation states and become geopolitical agents (Bremmer and Suleyman). For this reason, the struggle between the United States and China differs from previous areas of competition, such as the space or arms race. AI is led by the private sector (Drexel) and does so by exercising a new colonialism; If before it was about the earth, now it is about our data (Mejías).
The regulation and governance of AI is up for debate and ongoing. Three models emerge: the United States, more focused until now on self-regulation of the sector; the European Union, pioneer in the exhaustive regulation of the digital space; and China, with government control that uses AI for surveillance and social control purposes (Cedric). US and EU rules are subject to the principles of liberal democracies, which will also be affected by AI (Barro), and therefore respect for human rights. It does not seem, therefore, that a single governance model will emerge for the entire world, although there is an evident need for international coordination because AI poses challenges that no government can manage alone (Bradford). Without regulation we run the risk of being excoded – for example, if a hospital uses an algorithm that categorizes us as non-priority to receive a transplant – López de Mántaras). This may be happening today. The long-term narrative warns that AI could be a risk to the existence of humanity (Bostrom). But, if things are done well, there is no need to be afraid (Barro).
In this 21st century, AI will impact all areas of our lives: the economy and the labor market (Comín), healthcare (Jotterand), communication (Jarvis) or the world of law (Villasenor). Its data potential can also contribute to measuring and accelerating compliance with the Sustainable Development Goals (Oliver). But, as in everything, although in this race even more so, it is advisable to be aware that each step taken does not turn against us. May our intelligence not fail us.
* The paradox of artificial intelligence: will states learn to govern it? AI combines extraordinary opportunities with immense risks, but the problem is whether states will arrive in time to regulate it. For now, private companies develop freely and create a space over which they are sovereign. IAN BREMMER AND MUSTAFA SULEYMAN
* The struggle between the United States and China AI will alter fundamental aspects of state power. To evaluate how this will be affected, we must understand why AI is powerful, what the determining factors are for its strength, and what we can expect from its mature capabilities. BILL DREXEL
* Geopolitics of AI: from a global network to the rise of digital sovereignty The three major players in the development of AI seek not to depend on rivals and approach regulation differently: ‘laissez faire’ in the US, human rights in the EU and state control in China. BENJAMIN CEDRIC LARSEN
* Who owns the AI ??revolution: are companies or governments in charge? Big technology companies in the US and the EU resist bending to regulations, putting pressure on them with a power greater than that of many states. In China, on the other hand, they bow to restrictions. ANU BRADFORD
*A new colonialism?: Data extractivism For more than five hundred years, a third of the planet’s population was dispossessed of lands and resources that were considered free of charge to the platforms. ULISES A. MEJÍAS
* The future of democracy: consequences of the rise of artificial intelligence The impact of AI is already palpable in four categories: security (autonomous weapons, falsehoods in electoral processes…), economy (loss of jobs, inequality…). ), legitimacy of democracies and ‘civilizational risk’ (general AI). MANUEL MUÑIZ VILLA
* Should we be afraid of AI? The risks we face Rather than letting ourselves be carried away by apocalyptic fears or slowing down innovation due to specific errors, we must attend to other types of risks: loss of privacy, biases, defective designs, lack of regulation, promotion of inequality or unemployment technological. SENEN BARRO AMENEIRO
* We can all be excoded We already are when a bank’s algorithms deny us a loan or a hospital’s algorithms do not prioritize our case. RAMON LÓPEZ DE MÁNTARAS
*Interview with Nick Bostrom For the transhumanist philosopher, “AI could be a risk to the existence of humanity.” FELIX BADIA
* The way forward: AI for social good The various applications based on AI are the best tools to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) formulated by the UN such as curbing climate change. NURIA OLIVER
* The way forward: AI for social good The various applications based on AI are the best tools to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) formulated by the UN such as curbing climate change. NURIA OLIVER
* Health care: A brave new world? The application of AI in medicine promises more precision in diagnosis and treatment, as well as help in administrative work, but failures and shortcomings must be evaluated. FABRICE JOTTERAND
* Revolution in the practice of law – AI will improve efficiency and free up law firms’ work by summarizing documentation or searching for case law, but human intervention will remain essential. JOHN VILASENOR
* The world of communication Generative AI has joined human conversation but has proven clumsy when trying to replace a journalist. A compression of its limits is necessary for proper use. JEFF JARVIS
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