US, UK, EU Sign 'Legally Binding' AI Treaty

The United States, United Kingdom, and European Union have signed the first "legally binding" international AI treaty, the AI Convention, which promotes responsible innovation and addresses potential risks posed by AI. The treaty mainly focuses on protecting human rights of people affected by AI systems and is separate from the EU AI Act, which entered into force last month. The EU's AI Act entails comprehensive regulations on the development, deployment, and use of AI systems within the EU internal market. The Council of Europe, an international organization with 46 member countries, founded the treaty to safeguard human rights. An ad hoc committee started examining the feasibility of an AI framework convention in 2019, and a Committee on Artificial Intelligence was formed in 2022 to draft and negotiate the text. Signatories can choose to adopt or maintain legislative, administrative, or other measures to give effect to the provisions. However, legal expert Francesca Fanucci, who contributed to the treaty's drafting process, believes the agreement has been "watered down" into a broad set of principles with flaws such as exemptions on AI systems used for national security purposes and limited scrutiny of private companies versus the public sector. Fanucci also noted that the treaty's double standard is disappointing.