POLITICO Confidential: AI and how world leaders see its future

Опубликовано: Saturday, 04 November 2023 08:39

Presented by Equinor

By KATE DAY

PRESENTED BY

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Dear readers,

One of the animating ideas that led the Washington Post’s John Harris to found POLITICO was his own fascination with being inside the room where decisions are made. Too often, he now recalls, political journalism is driven by observers and commentators rather than those really on the pitch.

It is in this spirit that we push our reporters to make every effort to speak to those actually making or driving decisions.

We have a feast of interviews for you to enjoy this weekend. First, Anne McElvoy, who hosts our new Power Play podcast, sat down with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to hear more about his assessment of the risks and opportunities presented by AI. You can listen to their wide-ranging conversation here — accompanied by the emphatically non-digital Downing Street clocks.

Next up, U.K. Editor Jack Blanchard spoke to Alf Dubs, the 91-year-old Labour peer who arrived in Britain on the Kindertransport — which organized the rescue of children from the Nazis — aged just six. Whatever your view on the horrors unfolding in the Middle East, Dubs offers a moving account of what it’s like to become a refugee as a child and how he drew on this experience to become a significant advocate for those seeking asylum in Britain. You can hear the full conversation on this week’s Westminster Insider.

Wishing you a restful weekend,

Kate

EDITOR’S CHOICE

The future of warfare: A $400 drone killing a $2M tank

In this smartly reported story, we spelled out changes that have taken place on the battlefield, and beyond, which mean that a $400 drone can now, in theory at least, take out a $2 million tank — or even a poorly-guarded political leader. Read the story.

Dutch PM Rutte builds an early head of steam for NATO’s top job

Let the top jobs shakeup begin! After Mark Rutte indicated he was interested in leading the military alliance, we looked at how he might get there. Read the story.

Sunak the influencer: How the UK’s AI summit surprised the skeptics

A huge week for our tech teams, with reporters from London, Washington and Brussels all joining up to take readers deep inside Rishi Sunak’s flagship AI summit and explain its significance. Read the story.

Should you get a COVID jab if you’re fit and 40?

Two years ago, governments across Europe were insisting everybody got a COVID vaccine. This year, countries have been silent on what to do if you’re not in one of the priority groups, leaving millions of people unsure about whether they should get a booster jab or not. So we answered the question. Read the story.

Cabinet of ‘fuckpigs’ and a team with ‘no plan:’ 9 Boris bombshells from the UK’s COVID inquiry

If you don’t laugh, you’ll cry. We rounded up the (very) sweary inquiry into the U.K.’s muddled coronavirus response. It’s safe to say there was a lot to digest. Read the story.

North Korea sends Putin tons of ammo. Europe can’t do the same for Ukraine

A great effort looking at an embarrassment for the EU, which is doing a bad job of supplying ammunition to Ukraine while North Korea is sending vast amounts to Russia. Read the story.

The mysterious case of the MEP lovers and the disappearing EU pharma report

Who’d have thought an externally commissioned academic report on medicines access and pharma innovation could cause such a stir? When the study was taken offline at the behest of two MEPs in a romantic relationship, one of whom is a leading figure in revising EU pharma rules, it provoked questions around conflict of interest. Read the story.

YOUR WEEKEND PLAYLIST

EU Confidential: The race to regulate AI before it’s too late

It has been a big week for the world’s key players in the race to regulate AI development and make it safe. In this episode of EU Confidential, we bring you a roundup of where things stand — after the AI Safety Summit, organized by U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak; the publication of the G7 AI code of conduct; and the signing by U.S. President Joe Biden of a long-awaited 100-page executive order on regulating and funding AI. Host Suzanne Lynch, with some assistance from AI technology, talks to POLITICO’s technology gurus Mark Scott and Gian Volpicelli about what’s at stake and where the EU stands in this regulatory race. Later in the episode, we have a fascinating conversation with Professor Anu Bradford, author of “Digital Empires: The Global Battle to Regulate Technology,” which focuses on the ongoing rivalry between the tech superpowers. Listen to the episode.

Westminster Insider: Meet Alf Dubs: The child refugee who became a UK parliament grandee

As war rages in the Middle East, host Jack Blanchard sits down with Alf Dubs, the 91-year-old Labour peer who arrived in Britain on the Kindertransport — which organized the rescue of children from the Nazis — aged just 6. Dubs reflects on his experiences as a child refugee in 1939 and on how he forged a new life in the U.K. He explains why he got into politics, and how he has since devoted much of his life to helping other young people in dire need. He calls for more humanitarian support for those affected by the current wars in Israel/Gaza and Ukraine, and would like to see the U.K. government take a new approach toward those seeking asylum. Listen to the episode.

Power Play: Decoding AI: Rishi Sunak’s call for action

Over 100 leading figures from the biggest tech companies and governments across the globe assembled for Britain’s two-day AI Safety Summit. The U.K. hopes the event will galvanize power players into agreeing common aims to regulate the growth of artificial intelligence. In this early edition of Power Play, host Anne McElvoy talks to British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak about the risks and opportunities posed by AI, as well as other pressing global issues. Anne is then joined by POLITICO’s “Power Panel” to reflect on the summit, including Steven Overly, host of POLITICO’s daily Tech podcast, and Matt Honeycombe-Foster, U.K. news editor. Listen to the episode.

DECLASSIFIED

This week’s Declassified column takes a look at some great British ideas, such as using chocolate as a weapon, curing COVID with a hairdryer, and eating camel penis.

Caption competition

“French plans to increase the retirement age for working dogs have not gone down well.”

Can you do better? Email [email protected] or on Twitter @pdallisonesque

Last week we gave you this photo:

Thanks for all the entries. Here’s the best from our postbag — there’s no prize except for the gift of laughter, which I think we can all agree is far more valuable than cash or booze.

“Ursula and Charles hearing from the American ambassador to the EU that she will keep her job for another mandate and that he will become Secretary General of the U.N.,” by Paul Cartuyvels.