Under its Presidency of the European Council, the Government is to host an International AI Summit next Wednesday, 14th October at the RDS in Dublin 4.
The event will be opened by Taoiseach Micheál Martin and will feature speakers from many of the largest big tech corporations in the world.
Paul Murphy of People Before Profit condemned the Government for using the Presidency of the European Council to promote the interests and profits of big tech at the expense of personal privacy, resources and the climate.
Paul Murphy TD said:
“Next week’s International AI Summit at the RDS demonstrates that the Government continues to use its Presidency of the European Council to represent the interests of big tech. The speaker list of the Summit reads like a who’s who of big tech. It’s very clear who’s interests the Government is facilitating at this event.
“We already know that during the EU Presidency the Irish Government is pushing for very disturbing changes to privacy regulations which would mean that current GDPR rules to protect privacy wouldn’t apply to personal data as it relates to the training of AI models. This is a grotesque betrayal of ordinary people to feed the insatiable demand of big tech for ever larger profits.
“These are the actions of a government that sees its primary role as serving the interests of big tech. The interests of ordinary people are an afterthought, if they are thought of at all.
“The reality is that AI data centres are the toxic waste of the 21st century, but the government carries on putting itself at the service of big tech regardless of the consequences for the rest of society.
“But in contrast with our craven government, resistance to big tech is emerging rapidly across the country. People do not want more data centres taking our electricity, gas and water and creating environmental nuisance and damage.
“Anti-data centre campaigners will protest at the AI event at the RDS at 11am next Wednesday. They say ‘Energy Vampires and Job Robbers Not Welcome’ and I will stand with them at the protest.”
