Google CEO Sundar Pichai commits $120 million to bridge 'AI divide'

Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that he wished to bridge the "AI divide" and committed to allocating $120 million for AI education and training globally during his speech at the "UN Summit of the Future" on Sep 21.

As the keynote speaker for the inaugural "UN Summit of the Future," Pichai addressed the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Pichai announced at the event that the "Global AI Opportunity Fund" will be launched and that AI education will be conducted in local languages through collaborations with NGOs and nonprofits.

Born and raised in Chennai, Pichai told his personal story of how technology changed his life and emphasized his belief that artificial intelligence (AI) is the most transformational technology to date.

"The technology that changed my life the most was the computer. I didn't have much access to one growing up. When I came to graduate school in the US, there were labs full of machines I could use anytime I wanted — it was mind-blowing. Access to computing inspired me to pursue a career where I could bring technology to more people," he said.

He identified four areas where AI technology has the potential for transformative change: access to information in one's native language, AI-driven scientific breakthroughs, AI's climate-related catastrophe management systems, and AI's contribution to the global economy.

However, Pichai cautioned about AI's potential harm as well. He voiced worries about accuracy, bias, and misapplication of AI, such as in the case of deep fakes.

Pichai also advocated for rules that do not give in to protectionist inclinations, allowing AI technologies to reach a larger range of people for equitable opportunities.

Currently, 15 Google products serve more than half a billion consumers and organizations. Six of them, including Search, Maps, and Drive, serve more than 2 billion people.

Pichai said the corporation has been investing in AI research, tools, and infrastructure for two decades.

"Using AI, in just the last year, we have added 110 new languages to Google Translate, spoken by half a billion people around the world. That brings our total to 246 languages, and we're working toward 1,000 of the world's most spoken languages," said Pichai.

"We're guided by our AI Principles, which we published back in 2018. And we work with others across the industry, academia, the UN, and governments in efforts like the Frontier Model Forum, the OECD, and the G7 Hiroshima Process," he added.

Pichai asserted that AI has to be created, implemented, and utilized ethically from the outset.