Artificial Intelligence will be “critical” to future scientific and economic growth, a blog post by tech titan Google has said asserting the need for a holistic AI strategy focused on unlocking opportunity through innovation, ensuring responsibility and trust, and protecting global security.

A cohesive AI agenda needs to advance all three goals – not any one at the expense of the others, Google said in a white paper with suggestions for policy agenda for responsible AI progress.

The suggestions ranged from growing investments in innovation and competitiveness to promoting an enabling legal framework for AI innovation and preparing the workforce for an AI-driven job transition.

The blog post titled, ‘A policy agenda for responsible AI progress: Opportunity, Responsibility, Security’ said calls for a halt to technological advances are unlikely to be successful or effective, and risk missing out on AI’s substantial benefits and falling behind those who embrace its potential.

Instead, broad-based efforts are needed across government, companies, universities, and others, to help translate technological breakthroughs into widespread benefits, while mitigating risks.

On security aspects, it said the challenge is to put appropriate controls in place to prevent malicious use of AI and to work collectively to address bad actors, while maximising the potential benefits.

“AI will be critical to our scientific, geopolitical, and economic future, enabling current and future generations to live in a more prosperous, healthy, secure, and sustainable world,” Google blog said calling on Governments, the private sector, educational institutions, and other stakeholders to work together to capitalise on AI benefits. Getting AI innovation right requires a policy framework that ensures accountability and enables trust, it asserted.

“We need a holistic AI strategy focused on: unlocking opportunity through innovation and inclusive economic growth; ensuring responsibility and enabling trust; and protecting global security,” it said.

Economies that embrace AI will see significant growth, outcompeting rivals that are slower on the uptake.

“Governments should increase investments in fundamental AI research, studies of the evolving future of work to help with labour transitions, and programmes to ensure strong pipelines of STEM talent. Governments and industry need to deepen their efforts to upskill workers and support businesses meeting changing demands and new ways of producing goods and services,” it said.

If not developed and deployed responsibly, AI systems could also amplify societal issues, it said pointing out that tackling these challenges will require a multi-stakeholder approach to governance.

Some of these challenges will be more appropriately addressed by standards and shared best practices, while others will require regulation, say requiring high-risk AI systems to undergo expert risk assessments tailored to specific applications. Other challenges will require fundamental research to better understand potential harms and mitigations, in partnership with communities and civil society.

AI has important implications for global security and stability, it observed.

It can help create and help identify and track mis- and dis-information and manipulated media, and drive a new generation of cyber defenses through advanced security operations and threat intelligence.

“Our challenge is to put appropriate controls in place to prevent malicious use of AI and to work collectively to address bad actors, while maximising the potential benefits of AI. Governments, academia, civil society, and industry need a better understanding of the safety implications of powerful AI systems, and how we can align increasingly sophisticated and complex AI with human values,” it said.

It recommended proportionate, risk-based regulation that enables responsible development and application of next-generation technologies.

“Require regulatory agencies to issue detailed guidance on how existing authorities (e.g., those designed to combat discrimination or protect safety) apply to the use of AI,” it said.

Another suggestion included driving international policy alignment, working with allies and partners to develop common approaches that reflect democratic values.

“Develop optimal ‘next-generation’ trade control policies for specific applications of AI-powered software that are deemed security risks, and on specific entities that provide support to AI-related research and development in ways that could threaten global security,” the blog said.

It also called for exploring ways to identify and block disinformation campaigns, including interference in elections, where malicious actors use generative AI to generate or manipulate media (deepfakes/cheapfakes).