NATO Updates AI Strategy and Includes Emphasis on AI Safety

On July 10th, NATO released its Revised 2024 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategy. As the report summary begins, “The capabilities of AI technologies have continued to evolve at an ever more rapid pace.” With an eye toward competitor nations and also the dangers associated with AI, especially generative AI, NATO highlights the complex and challenging nature of this emerging technology. Notably, AI safety and responsibility are core themes of the previous and updated documents. 

The 2024 update builds on NATO’s 2021 AI Strategy that established Principles of Responsible Use (PRUs) for AI in Defence, including the areas “Lawfulness, Responsibility and Accountability, Explainability and Traceability, Reliability, Governability and Bias Mitigation.” The new revision evolves the strategy with an aim to, among other emphases, further establish a “foundation for NATO and Allies to lead by example and encourage the development and use of AI in a responsible manner.” The Center for AI Policy (CAIP), with an organizational emphasis on the safe development of AI, appreciates NATO's inclusion of these efforts in the organization’s AI strategy.

Furthermore, the United States has demonstrated leadership in the development of AI technologies and in the formulation of guiding principles for their safe deployment through organizations like NATO and the United Nations. While the NATO AI framework and others like it are more aspirational than concrete, CAIP looks forward to these and other organizations specifying and codifying policies staunchly emphasizing AI safety. Now is the time for Congress to follow suit with sensible and clear AI safety legislation.

[Continue the Conversation] On Monday, July 29th, CAIP is hosting a webinar, “Autonomous Weapons and Human Control: Shaping AI Policy for a Secure Future” from 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM ET. 

‍As the uses of AI for national security purposes are being discussed from kitchen tables to global organizations, CAIP looks forward to continuing the dialogue with a presentation by Professor Stuart Russell, a world-renowned AI researcher at UC Berkeley, and include time for discussion and questions. Those interested in joining the webinar can RSVP here, and we look forward to an interesting and thoughtful webinar on this timely matter.