Speech by on transforming scientific
discovery on Day 2 of the Global Partnerships Conference.
"It's great to be here to talk about such a fascinating and
transformational issue. Today you'll hear from people who
understand this better than I do. It's clear there are
opportunities. But I worry about the digital divide and
whether AI will be utilised for the benefit of everyone. The
decisions we make now will determine what is possible, or whether
AI increases the divisions we have now.
We have heard how international development efforts are grappling
with a paradigm shift in aid, escalating interconnected global
challenges, and a revolution in technology.
Artificial intelligence is not a silver bullet. But it is opening
up a world of possibilities.
AI is transforming science and accelerating breakthroughs, with
enormous potential for improving the lives of people in poverty.
New drugs. More accurate weather predictions and early warning of
hazards. More resilient crops. Cleaner, more affordable energy.
This is genuinely exciting stuff.
New solutions are within reach, and we'll hear shortly from our
partners at the cutting edge of these efforts.
But we know that technology alone is only ever a part of the
solution.
To make a real difference, it needs to come together. With
inspiration from collaborating across borders and disciplines.
With ingenuity and persistence in compiling data. And with
targeted resources and expertise to supply the right
infrastructure.
All of this means working in diverse partnerships – between
countries, policymakers, researchers and the private sector.
And that's why we are proud to be collaborating with some of the
brightest minds across Africa and Asia since launching our ‘AI
for Development' programme at the AI Safety Summit in Bletchley
Park.
Working with Canada's International Development Research Centre
and a wide range of partners, we are supporting locally-led AI
ecosystems, championing responsible, inclusive AI – and crowding
in partners to coordinate scarce resources and channel them to
where the evidence demonstrates real impact.
These partnerships are already producing fantastic innovations.
Millions of women in Kenya can safely manage the risk of their
pregnancies thanks to Jacaranda Health's AI-enabled chatbot. You
can go and see the work they are doing demonstrated at a stand we
have here at the Global Partnerships Conference.
Pupils with visual impairments in Nigeria can access education
through assistive technologies.
Farmers in Uganda can get advice in their local languages on how
to protect their crops and boost their yields.
These are potentially life-changing developments.
But as we begin to see AI bring about transformative strides at
the cutting edge of science, we must widen our partnerships to
answer new questions:
How will we ensure these breakthroughs aren't limited to only the
most commercially lucrative areas of enquiry?
How can we ensure AI helps us cure diseases for everyone, and
that it doesn't just create more so-called ‘diseases of poverty'?
And how can we create an inclusive conversation about which
global challenges matter most for humanity?
I hope we can approach today's discussions with these questions
in mind.
But before we do, I am delighted to announce today a new
programme on AI for Development Science Breakthroughs – a
collaboration between the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office, and the UK's Department for Science, Innovation and
Technology.
We are announcing new research which will rigorously test new AI
approaches to unlock breakthroughs – from weather prediction for
hazard warning, to crop engineering for food security, to drug
discovery for better health outcomes.
With this modest investment, we hope to plant the seeds that will
blossom into new trees of knowledge (that could have been written
by Chat GPT that one – I'm sure it wasn't… but it might have
been!).
But to realise this potential we need to work together to build
inclusive partnerships on harnessing AI's potential to accelerate
breakthroughs on global challenges.
This is only the beginning of an exciting new era of scientific
discovery.
Whichever country you are from – whether you represent a
government, a university, a startup, non-profit or major
corporation – we've got to work better together to make today's
scientific revolution one that serves all humanity."
