US, EU tech group talks AI rules, EV infrastructure, disinformation

At last week’s meeting of the joint US-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC), the docket included everything from tech imports to quantum research.

Officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and EU Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager, were in Sweden for the fourth meeting of the transatlantic group, which was established in 2021 with the goal of increasing cooperation and developing international standards.

Despite the expansive tech and trade agenda, the bulk of the news out of the summit was about artificial intelligence. According to Vestager, the group is reportedly working on an AI “code of conduct,” a set of voluntary standards that would serve as a stopgap measure while both the EU and the US hammer out related legislation.

A draft of those standards could be shared with stakeholders within weeks,Vestager said.

The TTC also announced the creation of “three dedicated expert groups” focused on “AI terminology and taxonomy,” “cooperation on AI standards for trustworthy AI and risk management,” and “monitoring and measuring existing and emerging AI risks.”

Those groups published the first iteration of its “Terminology and Taxonomy for Artificial Intelligence,” with shared definitions of 65 key terms such as “deep learning,” “model training,” and “supervised learning.” Separately, the parties established an “internal catalog” between US and EU scientific agencies to share research in five key areas, including extreme weather and climate forecasting and energy grid optimization.

Not just AI: AI may have taken the spotlight at the summit, but it wasn’t the only tech to get air time.

The group made recommendations for developing government-funded EV charging infrastructure, including a call to develop common standards and priorities and support for cost-effective charging infrastructure. Security for clean energy supply chains and the creation of jobs in the sector were also on the agenda, the White House said.

In a joint statement following the summit, the council highlighted its ongoing support for sanctions against Russia and continued concern about “foreign information manipulation and interference” (FIMI).

“Russia’s strategic and coordinated use of such activities in the preparation and execution of its war of aggression against Ukraine, and People’s Republic of China’s amplification of Russian disinformation narratives about the war, are stark examples of the dangers of FIMI,” the statement said.