BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 18. Address by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev to the participants of the International Baku Ombudsmen Summit reveals a strategic vision regarding artificial intelligence (AI), political analyst Azer Garayev told Trend.
"President Ilham Aliyev's address to the participants of the International Baku Ombudsmen Summit shows that the issue of protecting human rights has become one of the main topics of the global agenda in an era of rapid development of artificial intelligence technologies," he noted.
According to the analyst, the main point standing out in the address is that President Ilham Aliyev evaluates AI not only as a means of technological progress, but also as an important factor that produces legal, social, and ethical consequences.
"It's no coincidence that the address is dedicated to the topic 'Human rights in the age of artificial intelligence: opportunities, risks and responsibilities'. Currently, the application of artificial intelligence in many areas around the world, from public administration to healthcare, from education to the economy, is expanding. These technologies create great advantages in terms of improving the quality of services, accelerating the decision-making process, and more efficient use of resources. However, at the same time, serious concerns such as the protection of personal data, information security, digital surveillance, algorithmic discrimination, and reduced human intervention are also emerging," he explained.
Garayev pointed out that in his address, President Ilham Aliyev also explains the main principle of Azerbaijan's approach to these processes.
"That principle is that technological development serves the human factor. This approach shows that digitalization and innovation in the country are viewed not only as technical modernization, but as a means serving the well-being of citizens, the protection of their rights, and increasing the accessibility of public services. The special emphasis on legal acts, concepts, and action plans in the appeal shows that Azerbaijan considers it important to create legal mechanisms regulating the development of artificial intelligence.
As in many countries around the world, the formation of a legal framework in the field of artificial intelligence in Azerbaijan is of great importance in terms of preventing future risks because the rapid development of technology requires a parallel update of legal regulations," he said.
The analyst also noted that President Ilham Aliyev's emphasis on national AI infrastructure, information security, and digital governance indicates Azerbaijan's strategic approach to this area.
"This is considered an important direction in terms of both increasing the efficiency of public administration and strengthening the country's global digital competitiveness. In particular, the emphasis on information security is directly related to the increase in cybersecurity risks in the era of artificial intelligence. The mention of the 'smart city' and 'smart village' projects implemented in the liberated territories in the address also draws special attention.
These projects are presented not only as the reconstruction of infrastructure, but also as the formation of a new living model based on modern technologies. Here, the combination of artificial intelligence, digital solutions, and the principles of ecological sustainability demonstrates that Azerbaijan prefers an innovative development model in the post-conflict period," he mentioned.
Garayev announced that President Ilham Aliyev also devotes special attention to the role of the ombudsman institution in his address.
"This emphasis isn't accidental because the widespread application of artificial intelligence is also changing the directions of activity of institutions engaged in the protection of human rights. In the future, issues such as protecting citizens' digital rights, controlling the use of personal data, and ensuring the transparency of algorithms may hold a greater place in the activities of ombudsman institutions. In general, the appeal shows that Azerbaijan is closely following global challenges in the field of artificial intelligence and considers the protection of human rights in these processes to be one of the main priorities.
The message given in the document is that no matter how fast technological development is, people should be at its center, and innovations should serve the expansion of rights and freedoms. In this regard, the Baku Summit can be assessed as an important platform for both international exchange of experience and discussion of new approaches to the protection of human rights in the age of artificial intelligence," he added.
