AI and the State: governing technology, governing with technology

Government use of AI

Event: 17:15 - 18:30 | Doors open at 17:00

Reception (open to attendees): 18:30 - 19:00

As governments worldwide deploy artificial intelligence across public services—from benefits administration to infrastructure planning and climate response—they face a defining challenge: how to regulate AI effectively while relying on these same systems to deliver essential services. This dual role blurs the boundary between regulator and user, raising urgent questions about accountability, transparency, and democratic oversight.

Governments now stand at a crossroads: they must both set the rules for AI use across society and determine how to responsibly implement these technologies within their own operations. From automated social welfare decisions and public safety to AI-assisted legislative drafting and public communication, these systems are reshaping the relationship between states and citizens. How can democratic institutions sustain public trust when algorithms mediate access to rights, resources, and representation? This event, organized by the AI Policy and Governance Working Group, brings together policymakers, researchers, and practitioners to examine comparative experiences, assess implementation challenges, and identify principles for accountable AI governance in the public sector.

We will have an Introduction from Dr. Caroline Emmer De Albuquerque Green, Director of Research and Head of Public Engagement, Institute for Ethics in AI, University of Oxford. Following the introduction, Professor Alondra Nelson, Fellow in the Accelerator Programme at the Institute for Ethics in AI, University of Oxford, and Harold F. Linder Chair at the Institute for Advanced Study (US), will moderate a discussion on the challenges and opportunities of government AI deployment. She will be joined by a distinguished panel representing diverse perspectives on AI governance: Cassandra Madison, Executive Director of the Center for Civic Futures (US); Dr. James Phillips, Honorary Senior Research Fellow in Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy at University College London and former Special Adviser to the UK Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Science and Technology; Andrew Strait, Head of Societal Resilience at the UK AI Security Institute; and Elham Tebassi, Director of the Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technology Initiative at the Brookings Institution (US) and former Chief AI Advisor at the US National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Together, the panel will examine how governments can balance technology uptake and accountability as AI is used in public services and policymaking, offering perspectives from civic innovation, science policy, standards development, and AI risk governance.

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