Artificial Intelligence, or The Race for Power
Artificial intelligence (AI) is here to stay, and its use is spreading at a rate that is difficult to comprehend.
It is already present in a number of domains: in economics, where it is opening up new markets; in the military domain, where it is revolutionizing knowledge of battlefields and targeting and strike processes; in diplomacy, where it is creating a host of representations, discourses, and opportunities for manipulation; and in the context of societies more broadly, by bombarding us with information flows that challenge our sense of what is real and verifiable. . .
To what extent is AI sending shockwaves through our societies and how they function? Can its development be contained, both scientifically and politically speaking, by international cooperation, or will it escape our control? Who will be involved in this cooperative effort? Ultimately, this all boils down to one issue: humanity’s control over the course of its societies.
In the United States, with the war in Ukraine and the turmoil in the Middle East, the traditional balancing act between diplomatic withdrawal and power projection is donning new guises. What consequences will the presidential campaign have on US engagement in Europe and in the Middle East? Obsession with China, abandonment of Europe, ambivalence toward Israel: What scope for action will the next president have?
In addition to these ongoing crises on Europe’s doorstep, which are set to make questions of its strategy all the more urgent, current events are also raising more long-term issues that are just as crucial: the fate of the South Caucasus and the Black Sea, for instance. . .
This issue is available in French only: L'Intelligence artificielle ou la course à la puissance
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, OR THE RACE FOR POWER
Artificial Intelligence: An International Competition, by Benjamin Pajot
The Geopolitical and Diplomatic Shockwave of Artificial Intelligence, by Sébastien Fagart
From Ukraine to Gaza: Military Uses of Artificial Intelligence, by Amélie Férey and Laure de Roucy-Rochegonde
Assessing the Safety and Robustness of Advanced AI, by Tom David and Nicolas Miailhe
Artificial Intelligence: The Bane and/or the Cure?, by Nicolas Arpagian
WHAT FUTURE INTERNATIONAL ROLE FOR THE UNITED STATES?
How Will the Democrats Approach Foreign Policy Post-Biden?, by Maud Quessard
China at the Heart of American Foreign Policy, by Philippe Le Corre
CURRENT AFFAIRS
The South Caucasus: A New Strategic Space?, by Gaïdz Minassian
The Black Sea: Rivalries, Risks, and European Security, by Florent Marciacq
Elections in India: Modi on the Backfoot, Tensions in Parliament, by Jean-Luc Racine
BAROMETERS
Hezbollah and the Doctrine of Wilāyat al-Faqīh, by Alain Monnier
City Diplomacy: The Modest Reality of an Ambitious Concept, by Yves Viltard
REFLECTIONS
Are Recent European Elections Heralding a Post-Populist Europe?, by Thibault Muzergues
Corporate Social Responsibility: Has Europe Already Lost Its Sovereignty?, by Emmanuel Bloch
BOOK REVIEWS
Under the direction of Marc Hecker
La Fascination russe. Politique française: trente ans de complaisance vis-à-vis de la Russie, Elsa Vidal
À la solde de Moscou, Vincent Jauvert
Notre guerre. Le crime et l'oubli: pour une pensée stratégique, Nicolas Tenzer
Poutine dans le texte, Élisabeth Sieca-Kozlowski
By Frédéric Charillon
232 pages. 23 euros.
September 10th, 2024.
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Center for Geopolitics of Technology
Artificial intelligence (AI), 5G, cybersecurity, robotics, semiconductors, space... Technology, especially in the digital domain, is now deeply affecting all human activities and, by extension, international relations. The resulting political, strategic, economic and social issues manifest themselves at multiple political scales involving states, international organizations and private companies. The dynamics of international competition and cooperation are transformed.
It is to respond to these challenges that Ifri is launching the Geopolitics of Technology program in the fall of 2020, which builds on the work it already carried out on these subjects for several years.
The program takes a resolutely European approach to international issues related to so-called critical technologies. Its work is organized around four cross-cutting themes:
- Power: redistributions of power caused by new technologies, in particular digital; military and dual innovations; transformations of international competition;
- Sovereignty: definition of critical infrastructures and technologies; industrial and innovation policies in strategic sectors; opportunities and risks associated with international value chains;
- Governance: ethical and legal issues; interactions between companies, states, international organizations and users; public-private partnerships and GovTech;
- Society: political and social impacts of technological innovations; risks and opportunities for the future of work, health, the fight against climate change; connectivity and economic development.
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