EU, US, UK sign 1st-ever global treaty on artificial intelligence

The EU, US, and UK are among the countries that signed the first-ever international legally binding treaty addressing risks of artificial intelligence (AI), the Council of Europe said Thursday.

The Council of Europe Framework Convention on artificial intelligence and human rights, democracy, and the rule of law was opened for signature during a conference of Council of Europe ministers of justice in Vilnius, the capital city of Lithuania.

The treaty is the first-ever international legally binding treaty aimed at ensuring that the use of AI systems is fully consistent with human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

In a statement, the Council of Europe said that the Framework Convention was signed by Andorra, Georgia, Iceland, Norway, Moldova, San Marino, the UK as well as Israel, the US and the EU.

Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejcinovic Buric said that they must ensure that the rise of AI upholds “our standards, rather than undermining them.”

"The Framework Convention is designed to ensure just that. It is a strong and balanced text - the result of the open and inclusive approach by which it was drafted and which ensured that it benefits from multiple and expert perspectives," she said in the statement.

Buric noted that the Framework Convention is an open treaty with a potentially global reach, hoping that these will be the first of many signatures and that they will be followed quickly by ratifications so that the treaty can enter into force as soon as possible.

The treaty provides a legal framework covering the entire lifecycle of AI systems, promoting AI progress and innovation while managing the risks it may pose to human rights, democracy and the rule of law.