New York University, where the Forum was held, is located in the New York
City, world's startup hub right after Silicon Valley, and has witnessed its
rich history of growth. NYU is a prestigious university, particularly renowned
for its global reputation in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), and has
been producing outstanding talents including 38 Novel laureates and 8 Turing
Award winners.
The Forum was attended by President Yoon Suk Yeol, along with key
officials from the US: Maria Torres-Springer, Deputy Mayor of New York City for
Housing and Economic Development, Sethuraman Panchanathan, the Director of US
National Science Foundation (NSF), New York State Assembly Members Clyde Vanel
and Ron Kim, and many more. The Forum was hosted by Mark Lippert, the former US
Ambassador to South Korea, for the second consecutive year. His presence
underscored the robust partnership between two countries.
In addition, the forum featured several prominent figures in academia,
including Linda G. Mills, President of New York University, and Yann LeCun,
Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NYU. Prof. LeCun is a
winner of the Turing Award, which is popularly known as "the Novel Prize
of computer sciences," and often considered as one of the four global AI giants.
Cho Kyunghyun, Professor of Computer Science and Data Science at NYU, who was
tenured within 4 years of service based on his outstanding research
contributions, and S. Matthew Liao, Professor of Bioethics and the Director of
the Center for Bioethics at NYU were also among the distinguished at the event.
In his keynote speech at the Forum, President Yoon Suk Yeol outlined the
five fundamental principles of the "Digital Bill of Rights," which
will be the basic direction for "a new digital order." These
principles encompass: 1) Ensuring of freedom and rights in the digital
environment, 2) Promotion of fair access to and opportunities in the digital,
3) Establishment of a safe and trustworthy digital society, 4) Fostering a
digital innovation based on autonomy and creativity, and 5) Enhancement of
well-being for all humans. President Yoon revealed his plan that the full text
of the "Digital Bill of Rights" be disclosed soon.
Deputy Mayor Maria-Torres Springer and Director Sethuraman Panchanathan
expressed their support for President Yoon Suk Yeol's keynote speech, and
emphasized the importance of the close cooperation between Korea and the US in
the field of AI and digital. Charles Schumer, the Senate Majority Leader of
Democratic Party, delivered a video message to show gratitude for President
Yoon Suk Yeol's commitment to establishing a global digital order, and to
congratulate the Forum's organization.
Moreover, three Korean organizations, namely IITP, KAIST, and KOSA, signed
a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NYU called the "AI and Digital
Business Partnership." This MoU aims to strengthen the parties’ mutual
assistance in research and development (R&D), human resource development,
technology commercialization and other areas in the fields of AI and digital.
In celebration of this occasion, NYU Professor Yann LeCun and KOSA
President Cho Joon-hee gave presentations on next-generation AI R&D
directions and cooperation strategies such as identification of promising AI
and digital enterprises, respectively, and altogether highlighted that this
partnership would provide a pivotal opportunity to enhance the capabilities of
emerging digital businesses and researchers.
President Yoon also stated that this signing of MoU would become the
steppingstone for solidifying AI and digital cooperation between Korea and NYU.
Following the conclusion of the forum, the "Global AI and Digital
Conference," was co-hosted by NYU and KAIST, where international scholars
discussed the diagnosis of the future of AI and a global digital order. With
participation of authoritative figures in the scholarly world, including Professor
Luciano Floridi at Yale University, the Founding Director of the Digital Ethics
Center, and Professor Ye Jong Chul at KAIST, an international expert in
biomedical AI imaging, not to mention Yann LeCun, a passionate conversation on
AI ethics took place.
Minister Lee Jong Ho expressed, "The Digital Vision Forum, with
presentation of the Digital Bill of Rights, served as an opportunity for Korea
to secure its leadership in the establishment of global digital norms, through
suggesting tangible principles for a new digital order."
He further stated that, "It was meaningful that the Forum also served
as a platform for digital enterprises and researchers from both Korea and the
US to actively collaborate in the international digital startup hub, the New
York City."
MSIT plans prompt announcement of the "Digital Bill of Rights"
in form of a charter, which reflects President Yoon's digital vision. Building
on this milestone, MSIT will actively engage in global discussion on digital
order and norms with key stakeholders, such as UN, Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD), the US, and the United Kingdom, while continuously
working on the establishment of digital norms for different sectors in society.
For further information, please contact the Public
Relations Division (Phone: +82-44-202-4034, E-mail: msitmedia@korea.kr)
of the Ministry of Science and ICT.
Please refer to the attached PDF.