The Turgot Club attended the conference led by Jean-Gabriel Ganascia and Cédric Demeure on the theme of AI and national sovereignty. Jean-Gabriel Ganascia is Professor Emeritus at Sorbonne University and a researcher at LIP6. He chairs the ethics committee of France Travail and the steering committee of the Cycle des Hautes Études de la Culture. He has notably published L’IA expliquée aux humains (Éditions du Seuil, 2024). Cédric Demeure is director of the Thales Group’s central laboratory for artificial intelligence and innovation.
Jean-Gabriel Ganascia traces the history of AI and in particular the transition from symbolic AI to connectionist AI (see next review).
The discussions then confirm that Europe is entering a decisive phase in its history. It is indeed confronted with several technological breakthroughs, a weakening of its economic competitiveness and a recomposition of its geopolitical balances. The European model is showing signs of vulnerability to other major powers that have intensified their investments in the technologies of the future. The most problematic backlog concerns the digital economy, including digital infrastructure and semiconductor manufacturing. Europe is increasingly dependent on components, software, equipment and services that are essential to its economy.
In order to reduce these vulnerabilities, the European institutions (following the Draghi report) have set priorities aimed at strengthening the strategic autonomy of the Old Continent, and at remaining a major player on the global geopolitical scene. The first priority is to reduce the innovation gap through better funding and, above all, by creating a more favourable environment for the emergence of companies capable of investing and developing internationally.
The weakening or risk of disruption of supply chains for critical raw materials raises the question of the strategic dependence and national sovereignty of European countries. Securing supplies, in particular through the development of recycling, the diversification of suppliers and the relocation of certain capacities, is becoming essential. The preservation of European sovereignty implies the development of its digital structures, but also of its industrial capacities in the fields of defence, health and renewable energies. The recent review of defence budgets, initiatives to modernise infrastructure and cooperation programmes between states are evidence of a collective awareness. But these changes require enhanced coordination between EU Member States, a simpler regulatory framework, collective mobilisation of public and private funding, and a revitalisation of European financial markets (especially equity).
Jean-Jacques Pluchart
