Between 20 and 24 January 2025, Davos in Switzerland hosted the 55th World Economic Forum (WEF). The common topic of this year's proceedings was "Collaboration in the Smart Age." The event – gathering heads of states from around the world, entrepreneurs, and scientists – was also attended by representatives of WUST, and among them by Prof. Maciej Piasecki from our Faculty. Our university co-organised debates and panels dedicated to artificial intelligence.

In the session titled "Breakthroughs and promises: Foundation models from big-tech to localisation," the invited guests discussed, among other things, the benefits of developing large language models (LLM). This meeting was moderatedby Prof. Maciej Piasecki.

– We discussed the advantages of creating and maintaining local language models, on the example of our open model PLLuM designed for all applications and already being implemented as a virtual assistant for public institution users – explains Prof. Piasecki.

The participants, including Prof. Aleksandra Przegalińska (CampusAI, Harvard University Fellow), Tomasz Kułakowski (CEO of deepsense.ai), Yann LeCun (Chief AI Officer, META), and Prof. Mennatallah El-Assady (ETH Zürich), focused on explaining why it is not advisable to rely solely on large, commercially produced language models, especially for specific governmental and business needs.

AI House in Davos hosted a total of seven events: three thematic panels, three so-called round tables, and a networking breakfast. One of their co-organisers was the Ministry of Digital Affairs, in collaboration with the University of Warsaw and Wrocław University of Science and Technology.

Artificial intelligence in the society

The participants of the forum dedicated much attention to the opportunities offered by the development of artificial intelligence (AI), which is rapidly becoming the foundation for the advancement of many fields of knowledge and key technologies. They also addressed potential threats associated with its expansion – including the risk of job losses, the need to retrain millions of workers, and the impact of disinformation, which can undermine the trust that is the foundation of education and democracy.

The forum organisers also emphasised that it is necessary to start thinking about artificial intelligence and automation in geopolitical terms.

Representatives from our university actively participated in discussions on what role artificial intelligence should have in the society, organised as part of the so-called AI House. The panel "Geopolitics meets AI: What now?” was attended by Prof. Arkadiusz Wójs, rector of Wrocław University of Science and Technology.

– We discussed, among other things, the ethical principles related to the use of AI, including the pervasive misinformation – reports WUST rector.

He shared his thoughts and experiences with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Affairs, Krzysztof Gawkowski, the Rector of the University of Warsaw, Prof. Alojzy Nowak, the Secretary-General of the Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO), Deemah AlYahya, as well as Dr Anne Bouverot from the AI Action Summit, Kinga Piecuch, Head of Hewlett Packard Enterprise Poland, and Annette Kroeber-Riel, Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Policy for Europe at Google.

Working in the round table format, the participants also discussed how artificial intelligence is changing the power dynamics between nations, from technological competition to concerns about national security and economic dependencies. They also discussed the possibilities that artificial intelligence offers in addressing global challenges such as climate change and public health.

– Such meetings shape the modern character and responsibility of the university – comments Prof. Arkadiusz Wójs.

– After the discussions in Davos, I returned to Wrocław University of Science and Technology with many new ideas, and I look to the future of AI development with optimism – he adds.

This year's edition of the World Economic Forum in Davos was attended by 350 political leaders, including 60 heads of state and government, as well as nearly three thousand political leaders from over 130 countries and 900 company executives.