World Economic Forum Forms Tech Policy Councils for Blockchain, AI, IoT

The World Economic Forum (WEF) announced the formation of six separate “fourth industrial revolution councils” to work on new technology policy guidance, according to a press release shared with Cointelegraph on May 29.

Per the release, the councils intend to help regulators regulate artificial intelligence, autonomous mobility, blockchain, drones, internet of things and precision medicine. The boards — allegedly composed by over 200 leaders from the public and private sectors, civil society and academia — will also gather regularly to address the absence of clearly defined rules.

The announcement notes that the councils met for the first time today at the Forum’s Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Network in San Francisco. The WEF promises that those organizations will enable cross-country policy exchange, address regulatory gaps, shape a common understanding of best policy practices and provide strategic guidance.

Among the co-chairs of the councils are reportedly leaders from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Dana-Farber, European Commission, technology giant Microsoft, mobile microchip manufacturer Qualcomm, Uber and the World Bank.

As Cointelegraph reported at the beginning of the current month, the WEF has teamed up with over 100 global supply chain and logistics leaders to standardize blockchain apps in the industry.

At the end of January, the WEF appointed the CEO and founder of BitPesa, Elizabeth Rossiello, to serve as one of two co-chairs of the Global Blockchain Council.