AI Governance & Regulation
The rules, institutions, and processes that shape how AI is developed, deployed, and held accountable — from national laws to international frameworks and multi-stakeholder agreements.
Trajectory
Collapse into symbolic governance
Main driver
Corporate pace outstripping public institutions; lobbying
Leading actors
WEF; big tech; UN/OECD (symbolic)
State in 2040
No effective governance; WEF dominant
International organisations like the UN and OECD have largely lost their former role in AI governance, proving incapable of keeping up with the pace of innovation and economic dominance of corporations. Their function is limited to a largely symbolic advisory role without enforcement power. Lobbyists’ approaches to stricter AI regulation are usually nipped in the bud, or remain at best a symbolic attempt at state control.