The government of the United Kingdom has announced plans to partner with the Nigerian government on Artificial Intelligence (AI) safety and security risks attached to the models.
The Director-General of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Kumar Iyer, made this statement during the Nigeria Innovation Summit (NIS) held in Lagos.
Addressing young Nigerian innovators at the event, Iyer noted that despite its benefits, AI comes with a lot of risks which innovators and governments must be cognizant of and take precautions.
According to him, non-state actors are now taking advantage of AI to launch attacks on states. He added AI has increased and improved the capabilities of terrorists in making weapons and launching cyber-attacks.
While noting that there is a need for global cooperation over concerns around AI, adding that only the UK cannot fight this, the only way to tackle these sorts of problems is through global cooperation.
The AI Safety Summit that the UK is convening on the first and second of November is to look at international cooperation on risks and those sorts of threats. And it’s important not to confuse those sorts of risks with the risks that arise from innovation.
Iyer said, one of the areas that we will be working with Nigeria is specifically looking at AI and asking, how can we improve those datasets in education, health care, or agricultural diseases that are unique to Nigeria.
Iyer advised governments around the world not to jump into the regulation of AI but to adopt a measured approach to develop its guiding rules.
