Spanish PM Sanchez says AI industry cannot be self-regulated

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez warned on Monday that artificial intelligence cannot be self-regulated by those who wield control over the technology. Governments worldwide are scrambling to establish regulations for AI as worries mount regarding privacy, discrimination, job displacement, misinformation, and the concentration of computational power among a select few tech conglomerates.

Addressing an AI regulation event in Madrid, Sanchez, a vocal adversary of tech monopolies, pledged to bolster his nation's cyber defenses against what he described as "aggressive" frontier AI models. He unveiled a 12-month plan aimed at promoting responsible deployment and economic growth, which includes a proposed AI manufacturing hub and new models developed with the Barcelona Supercomputing Centre for applications in climate, healthcare, and energy sectors.

Sanchez emphasized the necessity of constructing data centers that adhere to stringent environmental and energy standards while safeguarding data independence and benefiting local communities. He stressed that we must harness this technology not in secrecy from citizens but in a manner that people perceive it as a prospect rather than a means to exhaust their limited resources.

Sanchez's comments followed the recent calls from leaders of prominent U.S. AI labs for a reduction in the technology's advancement, cautioning that it could autonomously enhance and escape human oversight.