How can Europe catch up with the US and China in artificial intelligence? That’s the wrong question, says the organization AI Now. Before Europe invests hundreds of billions of dollars in AI, it needs to be clear who is benefiting from it.
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“The EU is currently reorienting itself,” says Frederike Kalschuner of the AI Now Institute. “Up until now, our focus has been on:
There were regulations like the AI Act, but now industrial policy and investment are the issues. ” Kalteuner worries that no lessons will be learned from past mistakes. “If you look at past investment programs such as the European TIP Act, tens of billions of dollars were distributed without any conditions attached to the funds.”
The US company Intel was the main beneficiary. If we want to advance AI in Europe, things need to change.
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The expression “level playing field” is often used in Brussels and Berlin. All market participants should have the same opportunities. The AI Now report gives the impression that this concept is a fantasy. “Some politicians don’t understand how the AI market is structured,” Kalschuner said.
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This is another reason why AI Now recommends that the billions of dollars invested in AI not be an end in itself. “We often hear that Europe has to remain competitive,” Kalteuner said. “That sounds good, but it’s empty. In what competition, with whom, and for what purpose?”
Researchers and experts assembled at AI Now believe it is pointless to compete with the United States and China for the most powerful language models. It’s almost impossible to win this race anyway. First of all, we need to question whether AI really has as few options as companies and politicians would like.
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