Since May 2019, the World Economic Forum Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution has been convening an informal group of government, business, academic and civil society leaders to help shape international governance and cooperation on artificial intelligence (AI) in the global public interest. At a time of rising public interest in the technology’s social and economic implications, the Council set out to shape the public policy and corporate governance innovation agenda. Members meet virtually twice a year to discuss how to build trust and deepen understanding about the most appropriate and effective forms of AI governance and cooperation.

The Council is co-chaired by Brad Smith, President of Microsoft, and Kai Fu Lee, Chairman and CEO, Sinovation Ventures. Its membership comprises ministers and heads of regulatory agencies, chief executives, leading technical and civil society experts from the countries in the network and beyond.

The Council serves as an integral partner of the Centre’s AI and Machine Learning Platform, helping to provide strategic guidance, shape its direction and identify governance gaps that its multistakeholder approach is particularly wellpositioned to address.