AI summit in Paris: USA and UK refuse to sign

The AI Action Summit in Paris ended on Tuesday without a final declaration from all participating states. The USA and Great Britain refused to sign the draft, according to several media reports. Previously, US Vice President JD Vance had sharply criticized the European Union. Host France tried to play down the value of the final declaration.

According to Politico, the stumbling block for the USA was individual formulations calling for the sustainable and inclusive use of artificial intelligence. The UK, meanwhile, remained mum on why it did not want to join the declaration. It was said to be a matter of national interests. Some reports stated that London only considered a joint declaration to be sensible if the USA, as the leading AI nation, also supported it. They did not want to oppose the USA.

Sharp US criticism of the EU and China

The exact wording of the declaration, which was signed by 60 countries – including China, India, Japan, Australia, and Canada – was not yet known on Tuesday afternoon. However, it has been leaked that the paper calls for an “inclusive, open and multi-stakeholder approach” for “ethical, safe, trustworthy and human rights-based” AI. There should be no inequality in access to technology. Human rights, gender equality and linguistic diversity must also be considered.

However, the positive mood in the Grand Palais in Paris changed even before the final declaration. On his first visit to Europe, US Vice President JD Vance gave an incendiary speech in which he sharply criticized the European Union and China. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen did not address this in her speech – focusing instead on the planned EU investments in AI gigafactories.

In a speech, Vance spoke out against the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the EU's General Data Protection Regulation. Smaller companies in the US would have to pay “endless costs” to comply with EU data protection regulations, as they would otherwise risk high fines. For some, it is easier to simply block EU users. Referring to the DSA, he said it was designed to prevent adults from accessing opinions “that the government considers to be misinformation”. US companies would be forced to deal with these regulations.

Vance: optimism instead of fear

He also sharply criticized the EU's AI Act. Instead, international regulation is needed that promotes the development of AI technology and does not stifle it. The USA needs “European friends” who look forward to developments with optimism and not fear. The USA under Donald Trump would not accept foreign governments tightening the screws on US tech companies.

The US Vice President also had harsh words for China. Those who chain themselves to an authoritarian regime are at risk of having their information infrastructure infiltrated. “If a deal seems too good to be true, remember the old adage we learned in Silicon Valley: If you're not paying for the product, you are the product.” Vance also warned that the US would stop attempts to use AI software as a weapon to rewrite history, monitor users or censor speech.

His statements tie in with the declared political goals of the new US President Donald Trump, who has spoken out against the previous free choice of broadcaster and is against fact-checking, among other things.

(mki)