Britain needs to protect citizens’ rights in the race for AI

Delegates at the artificial intelligence summit at the Grand Palais in Paris. ‘In the past two years, countries around the globe have adopted frameworks of digital rights. We must not be left behind.’ Photograph: Benoît Tessier/Reuters

As global leaders meet at the AI summit in Paris, we are calling on the UK government to urgently develop and adopt a citizen-led UK declaration of digital rights and principles (AI race must be led by ‘western, liberal, democratic’ countries, says UK minister, 10 February).

We agree with the science, innovation and technology secretary, Peter Kyle, when he says: “Government does have agency in how technology is developed … We need to use that agency to reinforce our democratic principles, our liberal values and our democratic way of life.”