Notice

International Scientific Report on Advanced AI Safety: principles and procedures

Published 1 February 2024

1. Objectives

1. To drive a shared, science-based, up-to-date understanding of the safety of advanced AI systems, and to develop that understanding over time.

2. To do so by producing reports which represent up-to-date syntheses of scientific literature on the capabilities and risks of these AI systems. Reports will assess the scientific basis of current discussions relating to these issues.

2. Principles

3. The process by which reports are produced should be open and publicly known, subject to any government confidentiality and security classification issues.

4. Reports should aim to be comprehensive of capabilities and risks for the AI systems which are determined to be in scope.

5. Reports should be the product of a process which is inclusive of experts across a breadth of views and, where relevant, seeks to incorporate a diversity of backgrounds.

6. Reports should consider relevant scientific, technical, and socio-economic evidence, evaluating this evidence with objectivity and impartiality

7. Reports should be transparent about the sources used and the interests of those contributing to outputs.

8. Reports should clearly state where expert consensus exists. Reports should also acknowledge where and why there is disagreement in the wider expert community, and present the debate in an objective manner.

9. This field is developing at pace. Given this, not all sources used will be peer-reviewed. However, reports should be rigorous in citing only high-quality sources.

10. Reports should acknowledge the limitations of evidence cited, where relevant.

11. Reports will be neutral on policy issues and will not make policy recommendations.

3. Report timing

12. The first report will be published in two iterations:

a. The first publication will be in Q2 2024.
b. This will be built upon for a second publication in Q4 2024.

13. The Secretariat should explore options for delivering reports beyond 2024, with an ambition to announce the forward plan before the second iteration is published.

14. These principles and procedures should be reviewed and updated ahead of publication of further reports.

15. The below is applicable to the development of the first two iterations of the first report.

4. Organisation

Chair

16. The Chair of a report has ultimate responsibility for it, and will oversee its development from beginning to end.

17. The Chair will be advised by the Expert Advisory Panel (covered below) and have final decision-making authority on:

a. The scope of the Report.
b. The composition of the Writing Group.
c. The content of the Report, including wording in the final version.

Writing Group

18. The Chair will appoint individuals to contribute to the drafting of each report, from a range of backgrounds and areas of expertise. These will be chosen in line with these objectives and principles.

19. The Chair will also appoint a group of senior expert advisers to provide direction, advice, and support to the writing group. These will be chosen in line with these objectives and principles.

20. The names of these contributors will be published. They will assume shared credit as contributors to the Report.

21. The first two iterations of the first report will be UK Crown Copyright and Crown owned copyright.

Expert Advisory Panel

22. The Expert Advisory Panel are an international advisory body who will advise the Chair on the content of the Report.

23. The Panel is comprised of 31 nominated representatives from each nation present at the Bletchley Summit, plus a nominee from the United Nations. Participation in the panel is determined by nominations from nations.

24. The Panel should meet at least twice during the development of each Report. The Chair will chair meetings of the Panel. Through these meetings, the Panel will provide feedback on drafts of Report content.

25. Membership of the Panel should be reevaluated after each AI Safety Summit.

Secretariat

26. The Secretariat oversees all administrative tasks related to the Report, ensuring it is delivered to a high quality and on time.

27. The Secretariat will manage the administrative responsibilities of recruiting the writing group. The Secretariat should advise the Chair on the composition of this group, though the Chair has ultimate decision-making authority.

28. The Secretariat will lead the formation of the Expert Advisory Panel, by working closely with the appropriate nations. The Secretariat is responsible for convening the Panel, and for collating the comments of the Panel and coordinating edits to the Report following Panel feedback.

29. The Secretariat should meet with the Chair regularly and advise the Chair in all their duties.

30. The Secretariat should advise the Chair on making the report suitable for a policy audience.

5. Procedures

Dispute management

31. The Chair and Secretariat will work to reach consensus between members of the Expert Advisory Panel on the content of Reports.

32. Where, following meetings of the Expert Advisory Panel, consensus cannot be reached, the Chair will make a final decision on substance of the differing views.

33. A near-final version of the Report will be shared with the Expert Advisory Panel. Where differing views remain with the Panel, Panel members will be offered the option for their differing views to be noted in the Report, as footnotes or at an appendix.