Seminar on Advancing the Building of a Community with a Shared Future in Cyberspace to a New Stage
On September 3, the international organization World Internet Conference (WIC) held a seminar in Beijing on advancing the building a community with a shared future in cyberspace to a new stage. Zhuang Rongwen, minister of the Cyberspace Administration of China and chair of the WIC, delivered the closing remarks at the seminar, which also saw attendance of Wang Song, vice-minister of the Cyberspace Administration of China. The seminar was chaired by Ren Xianliang, secretary-general of the WIC.
Leading experts and authorities from the Internet sectors of China, South Korea, the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, and Australia attended the seminar.
David Gosset, a French sinologist and the founder of the China-Europe-America Global Initiative, delivered a speech at the event. He commended the efforts of the private sector and regional initiatives aimed at ensuring AI benefits humanity, while also highlighting the positive signal of the China-US intergovernmental dialogue on AI.
Regarding the effective utilization of AI, Gosset mentioned the China-Europe-America Museums Cooperation Initiative. He said, it is clear that museums worldwide are affected by cyberspace and must adapt by leveraging emerging technologies and AI.
David Gosset at the Seminar
In addition, Gosset stressed that we must also prepare better for the quantum computing revolution. Similar to AI, quantum technology should not be weaponized. Therefore, he urged for increased international cooperation in the field of quantum computing, as well as more public debate on the subject.
Gosset said, "I firmly believe in advancing toward a community of shared future for mankind. The narrative of de-globalization does not reflect our true reality. Our growing awareness of being part of the same human family on a fragile planet continues to strengthen. It is this global perspective and cooperative mindset that will enable us to use emerging technologies to alleviate human suffering, protect human dignity, and enhance what distinguishes us from mere animals."
Full Speech:
Dear friends,
First of all, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to everyone contributing to the success of the World Internet Conference. This organization plays a crucial role in exploring the evolving dimension of cyberspace, which is significantly shaping our world.
For some reason, I happened to be in the room when DeepMind's AI defeated Ke Jie on May 23, 2017, in Wuzhen— May 23 is my birthday. Ke Jie played exceptionally well, but AlphaGo's AI proved too powerful. It was a valuable lesson for me. As you all know, the game of Go— or Weiqi, as it is called in Chinese— is incredibly complex.
Concerned about the potential decoupling, particularly between China and the US, I established the China-Europe-America Global Initiative in 2021. Intellectual decoupling would be even worse than economic decoupling.
Since then, we have held our international gatherings online until our first in-person events in 2023. This initiative includes dynamic discussions on museums through the China-Europe-America Museums Cooperation Initiative. As we approach our fifth anniversary, we will convene in Paris next year. It is clear that museums worldwide are affected by cyberspace and must adapt by leveraging emerging technologies and AI.
Today, I want to convey several messages:
I commend the efforts of the private sector and regional initiatives aimed at ensuring AI benefits humanity. It is also promising to see the US and China engaging in intergovernmental dialogue on AI. Regardless of what has been said about the China-US dialogue on AI held in Geneva in May, what truly matters is that it actually took place.
However, given the scale of the issue, I have been advocating since 2016 for the establishment of an International AI Agency, modeled after the International Atomic Energy Agency. This would represent significant progress.
The rapid advancement of generative AI since 2022 makes this idea even more crucial. AI affects all of us and every country in our international community, and the UN is the only organization well-suited to discuss its regulation with the best interests of humanity in mind. I understand that regulating AI is challenging, partly because it is already a factor in military power. However, it's worth noting that the origins of the IAEA stem from the vision of a military leader, Dwight Eisenhower (1890-1969), himself.
Dear friends, we must also prepare better for the quantum computing revolution. Similar to AI, quantum technology should not be weaponized. Therefore, I urge for increased international cooperation in the field of quantum computing, as well as more public debate on the subject. I'm not referring to public debates about the nature of quantum mechanics, of course. Remember that the great Richard Feynman (1918-1988) once said, "Nobody understands quantum mechanics". However, I believe we should focus on discussing the implications of the applications of quantum physics.
I firmly believe in advancing toward a community of shared future for mankind. The narrative of de-globalization does not reflect our true reality. Our growing awareness of being part of the same human family on a fragile planet continues to strengthen. It is this global perspective and cooperative mindset that will enable us to use emerging technologies to alleviate human suffering, protect human dignity, and enhance what distinguishes us from mere animals.
Dear friends, let us work together to ensure that both old and new technologies contribute to the advancement of our civilization rather than its decline. What I fear is not de-globalization, but de-civilization. I want to emphasize that we should use cyberspace and emerging technologies not to erase our humanistic traditions, but to enrich and spread them to a broader audience with even greater depth.
I am convinced that we have entered an era of transhumanism, as human cognition and bodily functions are beginning to be enhanced. We are only at the beginning of this profound evolution. Consider what is happening at the intersection of neuroscience and computing. Notably, the neurobiologist Rafael Yuste is now advocating for the protection of brain rights, or neuro-rights.
In this context, we should reassert humanistic values to prevent the emergence of a divided humanity and to continue fostering a sense of human fraternity and unity.
Thank you very much.
