Ctrl+AI+Reg - 21 February 2025
Your shortcut to AI regulation, law and policy updates around the world.
AI Regulation Updates
In this issue:
Updates to US, China, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, UK, Liechtenstein, Australia.
Explainer post on Deepseek’s new Native Sparse Attention algorithm.
Bonus resource - unofficial English translation of Japan’s AI contracting guide
See more on my Global AI Regulation Tracker (English version | Chinese version)
Americas
🇺🇸 [20 February 2025] NIST reportedly prepares to cut AI Safety Institute staff: It is reported that the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is preparing to cut 497 positions, including cuts to staff at the US AI Safety Institute. This news follows in the wake of recent resignation of the Director of the AI Safety Institute, the exclusion of its staff from the Paris AI Action summit, and broader reductions across the federal government under the Trump administration.
Asia
🇨🇳 [18 February 2025] China President Xi holds symposium with China tech leaders: President Xi Jinping has held a symposium with some of the biggest names in China's private technology sector, such as Huawei’s Ren Zhengfei, BYD’s Wang Chuanfu, DeepSeek’s Liang Wenfeng and Alibaba’s Jack Ma. Among other comments, President Xi encouraged the private tech sector to "show their talent" and that China's governance and the scale of its market provide an "inherent advantage" in developing new industries.
🇰🇷 [20 February 2025] South Korea aims to build world’s highest-capacity AI data centre: It is reported that South Korea (through a partnership between the Jeollanam-do provincial government and Californian-based company Stock Farm Road) plans to construct the world's largest AI data centre by capacity. Set to begin construction in 2025 and complete by 2028, the facility will be located in the Jeollanam-do province, expected to have a capacity of 3GW, create approximately 10,000 jobs, and generate an initial revenue of US$3.5 billion.
🇯🇵 [18 February 2025] Japan METI releases checklist for AI related contracts: Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has published a Checklist of Contracts Concerning the Use and Development of AI. The checklist aims to help ensure compliance of contracts with regulations, manage risks, and protect intellectual property and personal data. It covers scenarios such as general AI service usage, customisation, and new development as well as compliance with Japan's Act on the Protection of Personal Information (particularly regarding the provision of data to third parties both domestically and internationally). See bonus resource below.