The Social Impact and the European collaboration within AI
by Elvira Parente – 2nd year student of the Degree course in Innovative technologies for digital communication (L-20)
“French Media Block OpenAI’s GPT Bot Due to Data Collection Issues,” reports Julia Tar in Corriere della Sera. Recently, several French media outlets, including Radio France and France 24, have decided to block OpenAI’s GPT Bot, a web crawler that collects publicly accessible data to improve Chat GPT. The main motivation lies in data protection and specifically the protection of media-produced content, considering how AI is increasingly capable of creating artificial intelligence models without compensation. This decision actually perfectly reflects growing concerns about the unauthorized use of copyrighted content and the possibility that chatbots might generate inaccurate responses based on such content.
Other international media, such as the New York Times and CNN, have also taken similar measures to protect the intellectual property of their outlets. On the European front, Italy, France, and Germany agree on strengthening a common strategy aimed at regulating (and sometimes opposing) the indiscriminate use of artificial intelligence. Recently, a trilateral meeting was held in Rome, focusing on discussing common strategies to be implemented regarding artificial intelligence. During the meeting, the economy ministers of these countries emphasized the importance of joining forces to promote investments and innovation in the AI field, while avoiding excessive regulations that could hinder the sector’s development. In particular, the Italian minister Adolfo Urso highlighted the intention to share investment projects in this sector to support companies wishing to venture into this “new world,” also referencing the upcoming Italian presidency of the G7 as an opportunity to strengthen collaboration. Meanwhile, the French and German ministers agreed on the importance of balancing regulation and innovation to maintain European competitiveness.
Another very relevant and current topic within the realm of new technologies involves Europe, concerning “how” to increase Europe’s competitiveness in the new global economy. Marushia Gislén and Mirek Dušek, Lead and Managing Director of the World Economic Forum, stated that Europe must focus on increasing public and private investments in technology and technological skills to improve its competitiveness in the new global economy. They also highlighted a significant but negative fact, stating that the EU lags behind other regions of the world in terms of investments in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. This is particularly relevant with respect to the fundamental goal of ensuring energy supplies capable of supporting global industrial competitiveness. Projects like green steel in Sweden and the enhancement of electrolyzer production are positive examples, but further efforts are needed to reduce the risk of private investments and promote mutually beneficial international partnerships. AI regulation must balance minimizing risks without stifling innovation.
The protection of content by French media, the collaboration between European nations to promote AI, and strategies to increase investments in technology, also aimed at ensuring the energy transition, are central themes that require continued attention. These are themes that perfectly reflect the complexity and challenges Europe must face to remain competitive in the new global economy dominated by technology and innovation, in a context where artificial intelligence increasingly takes center stage.
