Artificial intelligence (AI) is driving sustainable development while also presenting significant risks. At a SDSN Northern Europe member meeting, experts discussed how AI can advance Agenda 2030 and the SDGs while addressing challenges like inequality, environmental impact, and ethics. 

Speakers:
Risks and opportunities of AI for Agenda 2030

Prof. Fredrik Heintz from Linköping University, who was part of the Nordic Expert Group assembled by Nordic Innovation to develop Nordic AI guidelines, discussed AI’s dual potential. It is both a tool for promoting equality and sustainability, and as a source of risk, particularly in deepening social divides and increasing energy consumption.

He stressed the importance of incorporating Nordic values in AI development, particularly in the development of Large Language Models (LLMs). He also highlighted the need for AI to complement human effort, rather than replace it, and that education and open-source models being key to ethical and responsible AI.

Read the full policy recommendations for ethical and responsible AI

AI’s role in achieving the SDGs

Ass. Prof. Richardo Vinuesa from KTH Royal Institute of Technology presented research on how AI can support the SDGs. According to the research, AI seem to provide more positive impacts on the SDGs compared to negative ones. However, some impacts are of more speculative nature and there is still a lack of strong evidence for some SDG impacts, which motivates more efforts in research to further our understanding.

It’s important to note that some impacts can have secondary cascading effects, which can add more negative impacts on SDG targets. Such effects could be further investigated to help us to get a better understanding of how the SDGs indicators interact and are affected by policies.

Research paper: The role of artificial intelligence in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals

Sustainable AI at Solita, from insights into practice

Salla Westerstrand from Solita discussed how her company is advancing the practice of “Sustainable AI.”

According to Salla, two perspectives can be applied on Sustainable AI. The first one is AI for Sustainability, i.e. how can AI help to achieve sustainable development and implement the SDGs. For example, can AI help to optimize logistics and reduce emissions from traffic. The second one is Sustainability of AI, i.e. how can we make sure that AI is sustainable. For example, how do we ensure that AI is trustworthy, fair and inclusive or does not use excessive amounts of energy.

Solita has made a survey to find out what sustainable AI meant for different organisations. The survey revealed a gap between ethical principles and their application in organisations, pointing to the need for clearer definitions and governance frameworks.

Handbook of leading sustainable value with AI