Govt to Launch AI Safety Institute in Jan.; Japan to Collaborate with U.S., U.K.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:28 JST, December 23, 2023

The government plans to launch a new institute to ensure the safety of artificial intelligence under the jurisdiction of the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry in January.

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Ken Saito said Friday that the AI Safety Institute is to be established under the ministry-affiliated Information-Technology Promotion Agency.

The AI Safety Institute is expected to develop a framework to evaluate the safety of AI by bringing together experts from various fields, including AI and cybersecurity, from industry, government and academia.

The U.S. and British governments announced they plan to establish similar organizations. Japan intends to collaborate with them to conduct surveys and set standards for safety assessment.

“We would like to establish [a standard for] evaluating AI safety in Japan,” Saito said.