German chancellor Olaf Scholz could snub British AI summit
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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz may turn down his invitation to a major UK summit on artificial intelligence.
The government is hosting an event aimed at tech leaders, academics and political leaders to discuss AI safety on 1 November.
The agenda will focus on specific future threats posed by the rapidly evolving tech, such as cyber security.
Britain has mooted setting up a global AI watchdog to monitor developments.
While no guest list has been published of an expected 100 participants, some within the sector say it's unclear if the event will attract top leaders.
A government source insisted the summit is garnering "a lot of attention" at home and overseas.
The two-day meeting is due to bring together leading politicians as well as independent experts and senior execs from the tech giants, who are mainly US based.
The first day will bring together tech companies and academics for a discussion chaired by the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Michelle Donelan.
The second day is set to see a "small group" of people, including international government figures, in meetings run by PM Rishi Sunak.
It will be held in Bletchley Park, the Buckinghamshire country house which was once the top-secret headquarters of World War Two codebreakers.
Though no final decision has been made, it is now seen as unlikely that the German Chancellor will attend.
That could spark concerns of a "domino effect" with other world leaders, such as the French President Emmanuel Macron, also unconfirmed.
Government sources say there are heads of state who have signalled a clear intention to turn up, and the BBC understands that high-level representatives from many US-based tech giants are going.
The foreign secretary confirmed in September that a Chinese representative has been invited, despite controversy.
Some MPs within the UK's ruling Conservative Party believe China should be cut out of the conference after a series of security rows.
It is not known whether there has been a response to the invitation.
China is home to a huge AI sector and has already created its own set of rules to govern responsible use of the tech within the country.
The US, a major player in the sector and the world's largest economy, will be represented by Vice-President Kamala Harris.