WIPO Launches AI Infrastructure Interchange Initiative

WIPO Press Room

Published March 17th, 2026

Detected March 21st, 2026

Summary

WIPO has launched the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Interchange (AIII) initiative to foster expert dialogue on intellectual property and AI issues. The initiative aims to address technical and operational challenges, with over 1,700 participants registering for the launch event.

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What changed

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has launched the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Interchange (AIII) initiative, a new forum for expert dialogue focused on the technical and operational aspects of intellectual property (IP) and artificial intelligence (AI). The initiative aims to complement existing WIPO discussions and will involve over 90 experts from various sectors, including technology firms, AI developers, rights holders, and academia. The AIII will initially conduct a mapping exercise of current copyright infrastructure and identify challenges and opportunities at the intersection of AI and the creative economy.

Regulated entities, particularly those in the technology and creative sectors, should be aware of this initiative as it seeks to build infrastructure networks to support AI's potential while safeguarding human innovators and creators. Key discussion areas include data access, identification standards, watermarking, rights management, and IP enforcement. The results of the Technical Exchange Network's work will be shared at an annual public meeting on October 2, 2026, where further input will be gathered. Interested parties can apply to join the Technical Exchange Network.

What to do next

Monitor AIII discussions on IP and AI infrastructure.
Consider applying to the Technical Exchange Network if expertise aligns with initiative goals.

Source document (simplified)

WIPO Launches Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Interchange

Geneva,

March 17, 2026
PR/2026/949

WIPO today launched the Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Interchange (AIII), a new initiative for expert dialogue on IP and AI issues that will focus on technical and operational issues and complement ongoing discussions at other WIPO forums.

More than 1,700 participants – including government Ministers, industry leaders in the field of AI and IP as well as other stakeholders – registered to join the launch event held at WIPO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

In his opening address, WIPO Director General Daren Tang said: “AI has the power to change the nature of innovation and creativity. This poses challenges for the global IP ecosystem, but also gives us an opening to identify and seize new opportunities.”

“History shows that new technologies only reach their full potential when the systems around them evolve too. Railways transformed economies once networks became interoperable. Music streaming scaled once the industry built the metadata and rights infrastructure needed for content to move efficiently through the digital ecosystem. AI is now at a similar moment,” Mr. Tang said.

He added: “By building strong and healthy infrastructure networks, we can help AI achieve its potential of creating new opportunities while supporting, enabling and empowering human innovators and creators.”

Conversations that include creators, rights-holders, developers and technical experts and others will revolve around issues like facilitating access to data at scale, identification and attribution standards, watermarking, fingerprinting, rights management and even the use of AI to address IP enforcement and infrastructure.

To support the detailed, technical-level discussions envisioned for AIII, a Technical Exchange Network has been assembled with over 90 experts from dozens of countries, spanning technology firms, AI developers, rightsholders, individual creators, academia, and civil society.

This global network of experts will initially focus on undertaking a first-of-its-kind mapping exercise of both existing copyright infrastructure and the technical challenges and opportunities arising from the intersection of AI and the creative economy. The results of this mapping will lead to identification of targeted areas for further work.

The results and the status of the work of the Technical Exchange Network will be shared at the annual public meeting of the AIII scheduled for October 2, 2026 where Member State representatives and other stakeholders will give input on the ongoing work of the Technical Exchange Network. Other parties wishing to join the technical network can apply here: Application Form.

The launch ceremony featured opening remarks from Morocco’s Minister for Digital Transition and Reform of the Administration of Morocco Amal El Fallah Seghrouchni and Spain’s Minister for Culture Ernest Urtasun Domènech.

WIPO/Berrod

The event also featured a lineup of international speakers reflecting on the importance of the new initiative, many of whom represent companies that will be part of the Technical Exchange Network, including:

Ariana Arciniega, Executive Vice President, Global Operations and Business Development Strategy, Intercept Music, Mexico
Solange Cesarovna, Singer-Songwriter, Cabo Verde
Dante Cid, President, Brazilian Publishers Association and Executive Committee Member, International Publishers Association, Brazil
Imogen Heap, Recording Artist and Technologist, United Kingdom
Matt Hervey, Senior Associate General Counsel, AI Strategy, Cloudflare, United Kingdom
Vered Horesh, Chief AI Strategy Officer, Bria Artificial Intelligence, Ltd., Israel
Chris Horton, Executive Vice President, Strategic Technology, Universal Music Group, United States of America
Mark Isherwood, Secretariat, Digital Data Exchange (DDEX), United Kingdom
Ren Ito, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer, Sakana AI, Japan
Bruce MacCormack, Principal, Neural Transform, Canada
Malumbo Mkandawire, Director of Operations, Copyright Society of Malawi, Malawi
Ana da Motta, Senior Manager, Digital Affairs & Artificial Intelligence, Amazon Web Services Public Policy Europe, Middle East and Africa, Brazil
Alessandra Sala, Senior Director of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, Shutterstock, Italy
Guoyi Zhao, Director, Government Affairs, RELX, China
Andy Carne, Special Projects Lead, Imogen Heap, United Kingdom
Utkarsh Saxena, Chief Executive Officer, Adalat.ai, India

About WIPO

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is the United Nations agency that serves the world’s innovators and creators, ensuring that their ideas travel safely to the market and improve lives everywhere.

We do so by providing services that enable creators, innovators and entrepreneurs to protect and promote their intellectual property (IP) across borders and acting as a forum for addressing cutting-edge IP issues. Our IP data and information guide decisionmakers the world over. And our impact-driven projects and technical assistance ensure IP benefits everyone, everywhere.

For more information, please contact the News and Media Division at WIPO:
- Tel: (+41 22) 338 81 61 / 338 72 24
- E-mail