G20 ministers agree to pilot AI in public services
The Carolina Principles adopted in Chapel Hill commit members to identify high-value public-sector uses of AI, pilot them and measure the results.
G20 innovation ministers ended a two-day meeting in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on 2 September with a consensus statement on emerging technologies. The meeting was hosted by the US Department of Commerce and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Six pillars, AI throughout
The statement introduces the "Carolina Principles for Emerging Technologies" and covers six areas: pro-innovation policy frameworks, technology for opportunity and prosperity, a skilled technical workforce, intellectual property for AI, AI for standards, and industrial innovation in supply chains, according to the White House.
What it says about government
On the public sector the ministers are specific. They recognise that secure and trustworthy AI could improve the quality, efficiency and accessibility of public services, in areas such as healthcare, education, transport, disaster and emergency management, and public administration. To scale it, G20 members aim to identify and pilot high-value use cases, develop metrics to assess the pilots, and put in place the conditions for secure adoption.
A promise to measure pilots is modest, but it is the part most often skipped. If members publish what their pilots achieved, including those that did not work, the statement will have been worth more than most communiqués.
Research desk, Online
Stories by the IQGov research desk are written from public documents, official data and on-record statements, which are listed and linked at the end of each piece.
