The world risks “losing control” of frontier technology such as artificial intelligence if governments are too slow to regulate it, China’s premier warned attendees at “Summer Davos” on Wednesday.

Fears are growing of AI-driven disruption to labor markets and the security risks it poses — from use in conflict to breaches of cyber defenses and the potential creation of new bioweapons.

“The speed of technological progress is unprecedented,” Premier Li Qiang said in a speech, noting that artificial intelligence has boosted “innovation efficiency”.

“However, we cannot ignore increasingly prominent risks of losing control of technology and ethical lapses,” he said. “If governance in this area fails to keep pace, there could be serious consequences.”

Tech breakthroughs are touted as drivers of economic growth, but shadows include concern over job losses and geopolitics, said speakers at the annual conference put on in China by the Switzerland-based World Economic Forum (WEF).

Mirek Dusek, WEF’s managing director, said on Tuesday that AI opens the door to new opportunities in education, healthcare and other areas.

“We are blessed with a lot of technological advancements recently, but the main imperative for decision-makers around the world is really: how do you make sure this counts in the real economy?” Dusek said.

Adding to pressure on the international economic system is the US-Israeli war with Iran, which has stymied shipping from the oil-rich Middle East.

Li Qiang’s speech at the “Annual Meeting of the New Champions” — held this year in the northeastern port city of Dalian — offered the chance to deliver a message to the influential group of tech and business leaders in attendance.

Beijing’s number-two leader characterized China’s economy as a “safe haven” in a world now struggling with “multiple shocks, including global energy shortages and severe disruptions to production and supply chains”.

The country has “injected a valuable dose of certainty into an increasingly uncertain world”, Li said. (AFP)