Dr. William Regli, former ARLIS executive director and UMD professor of computer science,  spoke about near-term artificial intelligence and other emerging technology applications for democratic societies and international security during a Sept. 21 roundtable discussion that included Czech Republic President Petr Pavel.

Participants, including business leaders from both the Czech Republic and the United States, and U.S. and Czech government officials explored opportunities and challenges posed by the AI revolution for the Czech Republic.

Regli addressed the immediate challenges and threats artificial intelligence presents to democracies, how to face them and how to improve resilience against them.

“Artificial Intelligence presents tremendous opportunities for technological breakthrough, improving quality of life and driving growth,” Regli said. “Its applications will inevitably result in socio-economic changes and supremacy in AI will constitute a defining technological catalyst of geopolitical power.”

Regli served as ARLIS executive director from 2018 to 2023.