Technology governance


Technology governance means the governance, i.e., the steering between the different sectors—state, business, and NGOs—, of the development of technology. It is the idea of governance within technology and its use, as well as the practices behind them. The concept is based on the notion of innovation and of techno-economic paradigm shifts according to the theories by scholars such as Joseph A. Schumpeter, Christopher Freeman, and Carlota Perez.

Overview

The thought is that periods in economic development are commanded by a worldview driving innovation that impacts through finance components, hierarchical change, and more prominent returns. Currently, the worldview driving innovation is information and communications technology, which has grown exponentially over the past years.
Technology governance is a public policy concept; a humanitarian setting can facilitate both control and care of subjects in creating an environment aimed at reducing harms they might experience. Without governance, redundant technological solutions can occur, creating more complexity as well as a potential increase in cost, compromising future investments for innovation. There is a fine line between technology governance and its alternative, IT governance. It is not to be confused with inner-corporate arrangements of organization and IT arrangements, sometimes called "Information Technology Governance" or Corporate governance of information technology. The difference between them is IT governance influences the governance around firm performance and information systems whereas technology governance focuses on technology itself and adapting with it.
Organizations that can establish procedures and structures on public policies based on decision-making principles are at the heart of technology governance. It is a way to get people involved in these groups and allow all levels of government officials to participate. Technology governance serves as a mediator between technological innovation and controversies that surround it. Technology governance creates a balance between the political and social implications brought from new technology innovations.
Technology governance is a controversial topic with a wide array of stakeholders across the world. To ensure the long-term success, various organizations bring together groups and people to exchange knowledge and information, informing decisions related to technology-related public policy and regulation. Many of the technology governance organizations do not make direct policy changes, but instead aim to bring together relevant organizations and experts to exchange information and highlight key issues to influence public policy. It is still a growing area of academic focus and professional training.
The majority of organizations focus on Internet policies, including general organizations such as the Internet Society, as well as more specific groups such as the that serve as a "committee of the Internet Engineering Task Force and an advisory body of the Internet Society". Larger organizations tend to focus on more overarching goals, such as development and guidance for the changing internet and technologies, while many smaller groups advise and work with and within larger groups to provide oversight and more direct examination of policies.

Importance

Technological advancement often brings a new sense of innovation and increased convenience. These advances come with potential harm and threats if unregulated. Compliance can be breached, technology can be used to harm, and disinformation can negatively affect media while also being a potential interference in governmental/political elections. Technology governance aims to regulate that space which allows for a rather smooth evolution of technology as a whole. NGO's, committees, and unions have dedicated their efforts to the idea of technology governance as advancements become more complex and complicated. Groups like the , , TTC, and the IFI divide their attention to the demand of technology governance, as well as advocate for its further presence when technological advances are made. They aim to achieve a regulated space for evolution to run its course in the tech world, free from disinformation, malpractice in use of technology, and rules/laws broken.

Examples

Technology innovation has a lot of beneficial effects and benefits, but it also has a lot of harmful consequences and benefits. It aids in the discovery and management of the risks and rewards associated with technology. A recurrent pattern in these breakthroughs is a shift in the industry, as well as the contentious disputes that surround them.
  1. Artificial Intelligence
  2. Nuclear Power
  3. Gene Editing
  4. Social Media

    Barriers

Effective technology governance will involve collective action from various sectors to manage the development of breakthrough technologies. With the boundary-crossing nature of emerging technology, the need for collaborative policy-making architecture is paramount to adapt to the speed of technological change and address the variety of issues associated with introducing new technologies within our shared digital infrastructure. The challenge of a collaborative policy-making architecture within governance is the inherent need for trust and cooperation among diverse stakeholder groups between innovations.
Among some of the barriers for governance, we see a well-known puzzle: the Collingridge dilemma, holding that early in the innovation process — when interventions and course corrections might still prove easy and cheap — the full consequences of the technology and hence the need for change might not be fully apparent. The Collingridge dilemma can be described as one of the main underlying problems within the governance of emerging technologies. With new technologies like Artificial Intelligence, the implications of introducing and applying this within our digital infrastructure could prove to be dangerous and unknown. Another example is neurotechnology, with embedded devices and brain-computer interfaces that challenge existing safety and efficacy regimes and may fail to consider the potential long-term ethical questions of protecting the human agency and mental privacy. In the opportunity that the need for intervention within an innovation becomes clear, changing the course to align with a collaborative policy could become expensive, complex, and time-consuming. This uncertainty and unknowingness with emerging technology make the challenges within "opening up" or "closing down" development trajectories the central focus of governance debates between sectors.
Public acceptance introduces another aspect of challenges for technology governance. The resistance from the general acceptance within emerging innovations can fall under fundamental value conflicts, distributive concerns, or even failures of trust in governing institutions such as regulatory authorities and bodies giving technical advice. The opposition of public acceptance will require "anticipatory governance," an approach that uses participatory forms of foresight and technology assessment to work towards achieving desired future outcomes and focuses on engaging stakeholders in communicative processes with particular links to policy. Within anticipatory governance and the confines of the so-called Collingridge dilemma, we envision building three capacities: anticipation or foresight; integration across disciplines; and public engagement.

Initiatives

Global Technology Governance Summit 2021

This summit was first hosted in Japan in April 2021 by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Network. The Global Technology Governance Summit has goals of becoming the leading authority on technology governance of emerging technologies by ensuring public-private collaboration. The topics covered include industry and government transformation along with technology governance and cutting edge technologies. The summit was co-chaired by various industry professional and educators such as YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, and president of Imperial College London Alice Gast.
The Global Technology Governance Report 2021 was one of the reports released by the World Economic Forum during the summit. This report takes a look at how Fourth Industrial Revolution technology is being used in a post-pandemic environment and their governance gaps. This report focuses on five specific technologies of 4IR: artificial intelligence, blockchain, Internet of Things, drones, and mobility.

Science Technology and Innovation Policy (STI)

Many organizations in the United States and even around the world adopt the policy to foster discoveries. It is designed for the economy to increase the public's understanding of science, technology, and innovation while simultaneously promoting the research that underpins them and allowing individuals and businesses to grow. The policy aids technology governance organizations to execute their goal and maintain a balance.

Bureaus

1. ': Science, technology, and innovation ecosystems are used by STC, which is part of the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, to support US foreign and economic policy agendas. STC's role is to defend and support foreign policy advancement and the creation of new interests.
2. Office of the Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State : STAS is a focal point for integrating science, technology, and innovation into US foreign policy. The goal is to increase science while ensuring foreign policy security.
3. ': The SA's role is to carry out diplomatic initiatives in order to strengthen American leadership in space technology and other areas. By teaching and comprehending the support for US national space policies and initiatives, these affairs include space exploration, applications, and commercialization. The idea is to promote international usage of American space capabilities, systems, and services while also encountering new discoveries and innovations.