On April 9, the official opening of the 14th Russian Internet Governance Forum took place in Moscow. The Forum is held in a hybrid format; more than 700 people from 20 countries have registered to participate. The Forum takes place over two days, with 9 plenary sessions, more than 60 speakers, as well as a ceremony for the National Code of Ethics in the Field of Artificial Intelligence and the awarding of the Virtuti Interneti award winner.
The forum participants were welcomed by the Director of the Coordination Center for TLD .RU/.РФ, Andrey Vorobyev. He spoke about the main topics of RIGF 2024: “The Forum focuses on problems of information security, regulation of AI, preparation of the Global Digital Compact and other relevant topics.”
Deputy Minister of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation Alexander Shoitov noted in his speech that RIGF 2024 is taking place in the days when we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Russian national domain .RU.
“And this is an important date from which the Runet countdown begins. Over the years, it has come a long way from a local information exchange system to a global network, which is an integral part of the world Internet. Today we see that Runet, despite the difficulties and sanctions, continues to develop successfully and dynamically. The .RU domain has become the leader in terms of growth among all national domains, and the Runet economy is demonstrating impressive success. We continue to follow the principles of Internet freedom, provide all conditions for the wide exchange of information, implement the tasks of import substitution and development of our own products and services,” he said.
“A lot of work has already been done and is continuing to ensure the safe and sustainable functioning of the Runet. I would particularly like to note the work that needs to be done during the transition to a data economy by 2030, including combating fraud and introducing new technologies, including AI, while maintaining adequate information security measures and countering cyber attacks. And all these problems are solved, including by you, the forum participants. The opportunity for direct dialogue at the RIGF site between authorized bodies and organizations is of great value, and the proposals of the forum participants are regularly implemented,” Alexander Shoitov added.
Head of the Russian Presidential Administration for the Development of Information and Communication Technologies and Communications Infrastructure Tatyana Matveeva noted that the development of the Russian Internet is largely due to the active consolidation of the state and business. “Russia is one of the few countries with technological sovereignty, in addition, access to the Internet in Russia is one of the cheapest in the world,” she said. The speaker especially noted that Russia ranks 1st in Europe in terms of the number of network users, and 6th in terms of Internet penetration. Much attention today is paid to the implementation of artificial intelligence technologies, with the main emphasis being on ensuring that the introduction of new technologies occurs as safely and environmentally friendly as possible for users.
Chairman of the Committee on Information Policy, Information Technologies and Communications of the State Duma of the Russian Federation Alexander Khinshtein noted in his speech that Runet is part of the global network, but at the same time we have managed to build a safe and reliable Internet space on our territory. “The state realizes how important the Internet is today, and is paying unprecedented attention to it and providing enormous support,” the speaker said. He also said that by 2030, 97% of Russians will be connected to the Internet.
Also taking part in the opening ceremony of RIGF 2024 were the Head of the Secretariat of the UN Internet Governance Forum, Chengetai Masango, the General Director of the RCC Executive Committee, Alexey Borodin, and the Director of the Center for Global IT-Cooperation, Vadim Glushchenko.
In addition, the Code of Ethics in the Field of Artificial Intelligence was signed at the opening of the forum. This Code sets out the general ethical principles and standards of conduct that should guide companies working with AI. The AI Code of Ethics was adopted on October 26, 2021. It was developed by the AI Alliance, which unites leading Russian technology companies. The Analytical Center under the Government of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Economic Development took part in the development of the document.
The signing ceremony was conducted by Andrey Neznamov, Chairman of the Russian Commission for the Implementation of the AI Ethics Code. “In the two years since its signing, the Code has evolved from a set of recommendations to a full-fledged community of more than 300 participants. To implement the Code, a separate Commission on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence was created. And this commission is actively working and issuing recommendations on the most important issues in the field of AI ethics,” said Andrey Neznamov. At RIGF 2024, ANO Digital Economy, Runiti Group of Companies, AKAR, Domklik, and SPLAT Global joined the Code.
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