15:30-17:00

Thematic Session #1: Closing Digital Divide in the Age of Global Digital Interdependence

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With lower capacity in AI, developing countries are at a greater risk of being left behind in the digital era, unable to benefit from economic and other opportunities that AI presents. Addressing this imbalance and ensuring that all have a voice in the digital future and can manage the associated upside and downside risks, is essential for developing countries.

 

Moderator: Violante di Canossa, Chief Economist, UNDP China 

Panelists

• Eugenio Vargas Garcia, Tech Diplomat, Deputy Consul General; Head of Science, Technology, and Innovation; Focal point for Silicon Valley and the Bay Area innovation ecosystem; Consulate General of Brazil in San Francisco, USA 

• Rohan Samarajiva, Chairman, LIRNEasia Think Tank (Sri Lanka) 

• Vasuki Shastry, Associate Fellow, Asia-Pacific Programme, Chatham House 

• Nanjira Sambuli, Fellow in the Technology and International Affairs Program at The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace 

• Nannan Lundin, Innovation Counsellor, Swedish Embassy in China 

 

 

16:00-17:15

Thematic Session #2: Cross-Cultural Cooperation in AI Ethics and Governance (Co-organized with the Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence of University of Cambridge&Center for AI Governance)

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Realizing sustainable AI development requires international cooperation in defining governance and ethical standards, especially taking into account different cultural perspectives. Currently, there are many obstacles to achieving this goal, such as distrust between cultures and coordination challenges across regions. This forum will discuss these challenges and explore how to increase cross-cultural trust in AI ethics and governance cooperation between different regions.

  

Moderator: Yi Zeng, Professor at Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Chief Scientist of I-AIIG

Panelists

• Seán S. ÓhÉigeartaigh, Program Director, LCFI, University of Cambridge

• Emma Ruttkamp-Bloem, Chairperson of the UNESCO Ad-Hoc Expert Group on AI Ethics

• Vincent Müller, Professor, University of Eindhoven

• Amandeep Singh Gill, Former Excecutive Director of the Secretariat of the UN Secretary-General’s High Level Panel on Digital Cooperation

• Mark Findlay, Director of the Center for AI and Data Governance at Singapore Management University

• Danit Gal, Former AI Chair of USG Office, and Associate Fellow, LCFI, University of Cambridge

 

17:15-17:30

Report Launch: AI for Sustainable Development Goals

Zeng Yi, Chief Expert of I-AIIG

 

19:30 -21:00​

Thematic Session #3: AI and Climate Action (co-organized with System Engineering Society of China)

 

Climate change remains the most pressing challenge facing humanity. Emerging AI applications have shown potential to enhance climate solutions. These range from climate modelling and improving environmental protection, to increasing production efficiency and decreasing carbon emissions across the value chain. This panel will examine the critical role these applications have in facilitating mitigation and adaptation strategies to tackle climate-related issues. 

 

Moderator: Zhang Wei, UNDP Assistant Resident Representative in China

Keynote

• Zhang Xiliang, Director of the Institute of Energy, Environment and Economics, Tsinghua University 

Panelists

• WU Libo, Professor and Associate Dean of the School of Big Data, Fudan University

• Felix Creutzig, Professor of the Mercator Institute of Global Commons and Climate Change 

• Sylvain Duranton, Senior Partner and Managing Director of the Boston Consulting Group; Global Head of BCG Gamma  

• TIAN Feng, Dean, SenseTime Intelligent Industry Research Institute 

• Priya Donti, Co-founder and Chair, Climate Change AI

 

20:00-22:00

Thematic Session #4：AI and International Security (Co-organized with the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University and the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue)

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This session will discuss how AI would affect global strategic stability in the context of changing major-power relations, and how would this influence the powers that are less competitive in this area, and will share ideas on how to mitigate the negative impacts brought by AI.

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Opening Remarks
XIAO Qian, Deputy Director, CISS
LYU Jinghua, Northeast Asia Programme Director, HD

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Session 1 – Understanding the impact of AI on global strategic stability   

Moderator: CHEN Qi, Professor of International Relations, Tsinghua University; Secretary General, Center for International Security and Strategy, Tsinghua University

Panelists

• LI Chijiang, Vice President & Secretary General, China Arms Control and Disarmament Association

• LI Ruishen, Fellow, Center for International Security and Strategy, Tsinghua University 

• Vadim Kozyulin, Director, Emerging Technologies and Global Security Project and Asian Security Project, PIR Center

• Heigo Sato, Professor and Vice Director, the Institute of World Studies, Takushoku University

• Jean-Marc Rickli,Head of Global and Emerging Risks, Geneva Centre for Security Policy

 

Session 2 – Exploring ways to alleviate AI-related security risks

Moderator: Eric Richardson, Senior Advisor, Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue 

Panelists

• ZHU Qichao, Deputy Director and Professor, Institute for Defense Technology and Strategic Studies, National University of Defense Technology (NUDT)

• R.S. Panwar, Analyst, Future Warfare; 57th Colonel Commandant of the Corps of Signals, Indian Army

• Barry O’Sullivan, professor at the School of Computer Science & IT at University College Cork

• Paul Scharre, Vice President and Director of Studies, the Center for a New American Security (CNAS)

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21:00-22:00

​Thematic Session #5: AI Algorithm and Social Justice

 

While AI shows great potential to tackle social challenges, it also poses a wide range of societal risks, including challenge for labor rights and the risk of introducing digital discrimination based on gender, ethnicity and other social groups. It is therefore critical that we develop a framework on how to manage these challenges brought by AI algorithms. This panel will explore opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration and ways to address and manage AI induced biases and exclusion with a view to ensuring that AI applications can benefit everyone in support of inclusive, ethical societies and the Sustainable Development Goals

 

Moderator: Yu Yang, Assistant Professor, Institute for Interdisciplinary Information Sciences at Tsinghua University

Keynote Speech

• Chen Ling, Director of the Center for Industrial Development and Environmental Governance (CIDEG), Tsinghua University

Panelists

• Rayid Ghani, Director of the Center for Data Science and Public Policy, Department of Machine Learning, CMU Heinz School of Information Systems and Public Policy

• Chen Qiufan, Fiction Author

• Daniel Freund, Assistant Professor of Operations Management, MIT Sloan School of Management

• Birat Lekhak, Programme and Partnerships Specialist at UN Women, UN Woman China