France: The French Minister Delegate for Digital Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot will be in India to participate in the Ministerial Council of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) Summit on 13th December 2023, as well as to advance bilateral cooperation on digital technology, the French Embassy in New Delhi, India said in its press release on December 12.

The French Embassy in New Delhi, India posted on social media platform X:

"France’s Minister for Digital Affairs @jnbarrot is on his way to India to represent France at #GPAISummit2023 on #ArtificialIntelligence & advance 🇫🇷🇮🇳 digital cooperation, based on our shared vision of human-centric innovation."

@GPAI_PMIA

According to the French Embassy in New Delhi, this is Minister Barrot's second official visit to India.

"It also comes on the heels of the European Union’s landmark agreement on the AI Act, which would make the EU the first democracy in the world to establish a comprehensive set of rules on AI, in order to foster innovation while ensuring protection of citizens' rights", the French Embassy in New Delhi said.

As a co-founding country of GPAI, France strongly believes in the need for international cooperation to support and guide the responsible development of artificial intelligence that is consistent with human rights.

At this Summit, Minister Barrot will highlight the GPAI's key role in the international governance of AI, the need to muster GPAI expertise on pressing issues, such as the opportunities and challenges of generative AI, as well as the way forward for further strengthening the GPAI’s functioning.

During the visit, Minister Barrot will hold a bilateral meeting with Minister of State, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) Rajeev Chandrasekhar to discuss international governance of AI and follow up on ongoing bilateral cooperation on digital technology.

This cooperation is grounded in France and India's shared vision of digital technologies that empower citizens, reduce inequalities, and promote sustainable development. It is based on the 2019 Indo-French Roadmap on Cybersecurity and Digital Technology, and received further impetus during the historic visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Paris on July 14th, 2023, when the two countries adopted the Roadmap 2047 and renewed the MoU on digital technology between the MeitY and the Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty of the French Republic.

Mr. Barrot will also meet AI experts and hold bilateral talks with counterparts from other participating countries at the Summit.

In the course of this visit, Mr. Barrot will also visit the headquarters of the Unique Identification Authority of India, where he will learn more about India's digital public infrastructure and be given a demonstration on India's Aadhaar scheme.

"Lastly, the French minister will meet representatives of India's innovation ecosystem, notably in AI, and French digital tech companies to discuss ways of boosting ties between the French and the Indian tech ecosystems. As Europe's number one tech hub, France is keen to welcome more Indian tech talents and start-ups, which can benefit from accelerator programmes, French Tech talent visas, and government support", the French Embassy in New Delhi said.