On 1 and 2 November 2023, the United Kingdom hosted the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park, the site where codebreakers worked during the Second World War. Governments, researchers and AI companies met to discuss the risks of the most capable AI systems, often called "frontier AI".
The Bletchley Declaration
Countries at the summit, from several continents and including Nigeria, signed a declaration that recognised both the large opportunities and the serious risks of advanced AI, and agreed that more international cooperation on testing and understanding these systems was needed. The summit also led to several countries setting up AI safety institutes.
Why it matters outside the headlines
- AI is a global matter, and rules made in one country affect people in others.
- Africa has a stake. Nigeria and other African countries use AI products built elsewhere, and want a voice in how they are governed.
- Education is part of safety. People who understand how AI works are better placed to use it well and to spot its failures.
What schools can do
Teach pupils what AI is and is not, how it can fail and how to ask for human help. Technical skills and critical thinking go together.