On Our Radar
What’s on Our Radar: Top News and Must-Read Articles from UK and Beyond
- EU rules for general-purpose AI models came into effect, requiring greater transparency, safety, and accountability from developers.
- The General Assembly established an Independent International Scientific Panel on AI and a Global Dialogue on AI Governance to provide evidence-based assessments and promote inclusive, transparent international cooperation on AI risks and opportunities.
- Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Informatics launched a public consultation on its National AI Roadmap White Paper and draft AI Ethics Guidelines, inviting input from stakeholders.
- Meta envisions “personal superintelligence” as AI that empowers individuals to achieve their goals and create value, focusing on human-centred progress rather than centralised automation.
- A new experiment by Doge uses AI to propose eliminating half of U.S. federal regulations, sparking debate over efficiency versus oversight.
- The EU Commission signed an agreement with ENISA to operate the new EU Cybersecurity Reserve, funded with €36 million, to help Member States respond to major cyber incidents.
- Google joined the EU’s AI Code of Practice, despite expressing concerns about some regulatory provisions.
- Pakistan’s federal cabinet approved a National AI Policy that aims to train one million people and advance AI adoption across sectors.
- The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has issued an opinion outlining governance and risk management principles for AI in financial services, emphasising transparency, accountability, and ethical oversight.
- China’s Foreign Ministry reaffirmed its stance on AI governance, calling for fairness, inclusiveness, and international cooperation in developing AI standards.
- UC Berkeley researchers proposed evidence-based policy recommendations for AI regulation, emphasising scientific rigour in policymaking.
- China released ethical guidelines for autonomous driving, prioritising respect for human life and clear accountability in AI-driven transport systems.
- North Korea is turning to Russia for support in AI development, deepening technological cooperation between the two nations.
- NVIDIA’s CEO visited Washington, D.C. and China to promote AI adoption and strengthen ties with policymakers.
- Experts at a Shanghai conference urged stronger U.S.-China collaboration in AI research and governance to address global risks.
- The UK’s AI Safety Institute announced an international coalition to safeguard AI development, bringing together governments and research bodies.
- Pennsylvania lawmakers introduced proposals to establish AI guardrails in healthcare, focusing on patient safety and accountability.
- A bipartisan U.S. Senate bill was reintroduced to address AI challenges, with a focus on countering China’s influence and securing American innovation.
- Tencent released its open-source Hunyuan AI models, designed for a wide range of applications from natural language processing to image generation.
- Indonesia and the UK launched a joint dialogue report to guide AI policymaking, emphasising ethical use and international cooperation.
- The UK government published its response on data intermediaries, outlining their role in enabling safe and efficient data sharing.
- Apple CEO Tim Cook is pushing to accelerate the company’s AI strategy to regain competitiveness in the global AI race.
- The European Commission launched a consultation on the role of AI and digitalisation in transforming the energy sector.
- Local leaders across the UK’s nations will each receive £30 million to drive innovation and stimulate economic growth.
- The EU opened a call for tenders under the AI for Public Good initiative, inviting proposals for projects with societal impact.
- The UK is piloting AI in hospitals to automate discharge paperwork, freeing doctors to spend more time with patients.
- A Financial Times analysis explores the geopolitical and economic stakes of the AI race, highlighting competition between global powers.
- Google DeepMind introduced Genie 3, a new frontier in world models designed to better understand and simulate real-world dynamics.
- The World Bank launched the Mobilizing Access to the Digital Economy Alliance in Africa to expand digital and AI-driven opportunities.
- The UK government expanded its AI Exemplars Programme, showcasing real-world applications of AI across public services.
- Google introduced the APAC AI for Society Initiative, supporting projects across Asia-Pacific that address social impact challenges with AI.
- Ukraine announced work on a national AI infrastructure and AI Factory, aiming to accelerate digital transformation and innovation.
- The OECD published a report on AI openness, examining data access, collaboration, and policy frameworks to foster innovation and trust.
- The Observer Research Foundation outlined future directions for AI in India, emphasising governance, innovation, and global competitiveness.
- Politico explored how Big Tech’s political influence is extending into local communities, raising questions about grassroots-level power dynamics.
- The OECD released a Regulatory Sandbox Toolkit, guiding governments in testing and scaling AI and digital innovations responsibly.
- Concordia AI released its State of AI Safety in China 2025 report, mapping regulatory and research developments in AI risk management.
- The UK government published a cyber governance mapping report, identifying global frameworks and gaps in cybersecurity policy.
- Malaysia released its latest AI strategy updates, highlighting national priorities for innovation and responsible deployment.
- ORF examined global and Indian perspectives on AI, outlining current trends and future directions for governance and industry.
- UNESCO reported on the digital transformation of higher education in South Asia, assessing opportunities and challenges for inclusive education.
- An OECD report reviewed digital government in Australia, analysing policies that enable innovation and public service efficiency. OECD also assessed digital government in Chile, highlighting progress and challenges in advancing digital transformation.
- The UK published a report on using population movement data to modernise digital government and unlock policy innovation.
Articles
- “Urban Three-Dimension Green Quantity Estimation: An Approach Utilizing UAV, Satellite Imagery, and Machine Learning” presents a novel, efficient, and non-destructive method to estimate three-dimensional urban greenery (3DGQ) using drone and satellite data combined with machine learning, offering significant promise for large-scale urban planning.
- “How digital literacy and ICT self-efficacy shape student perceived post-editing competence” explores the direct positive influence that students’ digital literacy and ICT confidence have on their perceived competence in physical education, hinting at broader implications for digital empowerment in education.
- “Strategic bidding in pay-as-bid power reserve markets: A machine learning approach” introduces a probabilistic classification model to estimate bid acceptance in Italy’s ancillary services market, showing how explainable AI can both optimize profits for market participants and shed light on regulatory biases.
- “Data collaboration in digital government research: A literature review and research agenda” develops a novel spatial assessment framework using geospatial data and machine learning to track urban digital economy growth, revealing rising regional clustering and persistent imbalances across China.
- “Mapping the digital landscape: A bibliometric analysis of digital ecosystem research”provides the first large-scale overview of nearly 2,000 publications, identifying five key research clusters and outlining future agendas around governance, sustainability, and human-centric AI applications.
- “Enhancing Intellectual Property Identification and Valuation in Manufacturing through Digital Twins” presents empirical evidence from UK and Brazilian automotive firms, showing how standardised digital twins significantly increase both the identification and valuation of IP assets.
- “Digital borders and beyond: Establishing normative grounds for cybersecurity and sovereignty in international law” explores the gaps in existing legal regimes for cyberspace, calling for a flexible and adaptive international legal architecture that balances state sovereignty, global internet governance, and human rights in the face of evolving cyber threats.
- “Digital empowerment and economic equity: Exploring the impact of household digital capability on income inequality” finds that digital economic growth can widen income inequality, especially when gaps in digital access and usage persist underscoring the need to strengthen basic digital capabilities to avoid deepening exclusion and disadvantage.
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“We need a new ethics for a world of AI agents” argues that the rise of autonomous AI agents necessitates a rethinking of safety, accountability, and human–machine relationships, emphasising the need for value-alignment and ethical frameworks to manage their societal impact .
Blogs
- AIBusiness discussed the widening global divide in AI governance, as major powers adopt diverging strategies.
- The Alan Turing Institute argued that humanities will be essential for shaping AI’s societal future.
- China’s push to boost its AI sector through Shanghai subsidies highlights its intensifying rivalry with the U.S.
- GovInsider explored whether digital public infrastructure could help streamline bureaucracy in Italy.
- GovInsider also analysed how the EU integrates intergenerational fairness into policymaking frameworks.
- A World Bank blog emphasised the role of interoperable digital public infrastructure in driving rapid transformation.
- Open Future critiqued the EU’s AI transparency template, calling it a step forward but insufficient for real accountability.
- An LSE blog reflected on why politeness in interacting with AI tools like ChatGPT may matter more than expected.
- Another LSE blog examined data collection in India’s education system, stressing better use of data for policy impact.
- The ODI reflected on data infrastructure for public health, sharing insights from a recent roundtable.
- Google’s policy blog discussed building skilled governments through partnerships with Apolitical.
- Google DeepMind introduced Weather Lab AI, a new system for cyclone prediction and climate tracking.
- The World Economic Forum highlighted how AI and green technologies can converge to accelerate sustainable transitions.
- Another WEF blog explored how businesses can unlock real economic value from AI adoption.
- “The Data Commons Landscape: An Analysis of our Data Commons for Generative Artificial Intelligence Repository” reviews 60 globally governed data ecosystems supporting responsible AI, highlighting trends in domains, regions, and data types.
- Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund – UK Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
- The APEX Awards (Academies Partnership in Supporting Excellence in Cross-disciplinary research)– The British Academy
- International Interdisciplinary Research Projects 2026 – The British Academy