Home » Departments and Centres » Academic catalogue » Course detail

Open sidebar menu

AI Governance (STG-MA-ECM-AIG)

STG-MA-ECM-AIG

Description

Science and technology (S&T) has frequently been the focal point for international collaboration that seeks to maximize its potential and minimize and control its risks.  This has been the case whether it be the telegraph, nuclear weapons or now the defining technology of our era: artificial intelligence (AI).  This course examines how AI is profoundly shaping technology diplomacy, international relations and transnational governance.   For some countries, AI’s ascension is a chance to achieve shared prosperity, and to harness collective power for social good, limiting common harms. At the same time, for some, AI is a potent tool for division, meddling, and modern warfare and the rise of new sovereign powers: big tech. 

Navigating this uncharted territory is all the more challenging because the contours are constantly changing as the technology evolves.  In this course, we will explore the parameters of AI governance in a global context, identify key topics, vital institutions, and significant policies shaping this conversation. Students will become familiar with key issues that dominate political agendas around the world, important players and coalitions addressing AI, and the interplay that can yield success or result in impasse. Through case studies, readings, and interactive discussions, students will gain a deeper understanding and foundational knowledge to engage with the emerging challenges and opportunities for governance of AI in an age of globalization.  The assignments will further hone your policy writing, both in briefing memos and longer analytical reports, as well as your oral communication and presentation skills, and working as part of a team.

Students will gain familiarity with the international evolution, current state, and future trajectory of AI governance, explore the function of various stakeholders in shaping global policy, and analyze the growing role of tech diplomacy in the age of AI. Students will learn about the world’s most prominent multi-stakeholder groups, including: the Group of Seven (G7), the Group of 20 (G20), the European Union (EU), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the United Nations (UN) as well as other groups such as the Trade and Technology Council (TTC), the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI), and the emergence of AI Safety Institutes. 

Students will come to understand the relative position of different countries and how the geo-political dynamics shape the potential for global governance of this key technology. The course will explore how the past affects the current debate.  From this position, students will probe the emerging shape of future global AI governance.  This AI-induced new alignment of countries, institutions and rules will have profound implications for world order.
 

Register for this course