Press release -
Umeå professor new member of the United Nations AI Body
Virginia Dignum, Professor at the Department of Computing Science, Umeå University, has, as the only Swedish representative, been appointed as a member of the United Nation's High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence, AI. The tasks of the body are to provide advice and propose solutions for the governance and management of AI at the global international level.
A total of 38 experts have been appointed. The members come from different science fields and backgrounds.
– I am very honoured to have been selected for this body. It is very good that the UN aims for global AI governance as we need to leverage the many regional initiatives and governance instruments already and being developed. I am keen on contributing to a multi-stakeholder, networked approach that leverages existing work and bridges diverse perspectives, says Virginia Dignum.
The advisory body will contribute different perspectives and approaches for how AI can be governed and adapted for the benefit of humanity. The work will focus on human rights and the Sustainable Development Goals.
– I will be working with the aim that this advisory body will aim at a balanced debate on AI’s opportunities and challenges, without fear mongering or down-playing of opportunities and challenges, continues Dignum.
The body, which will consist of experts from governments, the private sector and civil society. It will engage and consult with existing and new stakeholders and international organisations to bridge perspectives between interest groups and networks.
The official name of the body is "High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence" and it is organisationally positioned directly under the Office of the Secretary-General António Guterres.
About Virginia Dignum
Virginia Dignum is Professor of Responsible Artificial Intelligence at the Department of Computing Science, Umeå University. Dignum is affiliated with several high-profile European and international bodies and committees. Dignum frequently lectures on the social and ethical impacts of artificial intelligence at international scientific conferences as well as popular science events.
Read more about AI and its application areas on Umeå University AI pages
For more information, please contact:
Virginia Dignum, Professor, Department of Computing Science
Phone: +46 90 786 6308 (work), +46 720 850 890 (mobile)
Email: virginia.dignum@umu.se
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Umeå University
Umeå University is one of Sweden’s largest institutions of higher education with over 37,000 students and 4,300 faculty and staff. The university is home to a wide range of high-quality education programmes and world-class research in a number of fields. Umeå University was also where the revolutionary gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 was discovered that has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
At Umeå University, distances are short. The university's unified campus encourages academic meetings, an exchange of ideas and interdisciplinary co-operation, and promotes a dynamic and open culture in which students and staff rejoice in the success of others.
