Trump govt to host UN event on AI next week

Trump govt to host UN event on AI next week

The Trump administration will convene a high-level event on artificial intelligence on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly Wednesday, multiple sources familiar with the matter said, as the issue is expected to loom large over the global gathering.

The US event, to which multiple countries have been invited, comes as questions of AI and security have taken on new urgency amid dire warnings about the potential existential threat posed by artificial intelligence.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has raged against the idea of government regulations, alleging concerns about the technology are a “hoax.”

The US event is slated to take place the same day as a UN Security Council meeting on AI and security, to discuss the risks being seen by AI companies and executives. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is expected to brief that meeting, an OpenAI spokesperson said.

US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz, Undersecretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Jacob Helberg, and Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers will host the US event.

The US is billing it as chance to talk about partnering with the US on AI, according to a source familiar with the event, and there is expected to be a discussion about the “policy, legal, and regulatory conditions that enable adoption at scale, including free expression considerations.”

CNN has reached out to the State Department for comment.

Claire Melamed, the Vice President for AI and Digital Cooperation at the United Nations Foundation said there are “many side events at the global gathering focused on AI, but it’s “less clear how much it’s going to be an agenda in the main formal business.”