On April 20, Deputy Minister of Digital Affairs Isabel Hou attended the Privacy Symposium, the premier international event for data governance and privacy protection, held in Venice, Italy. Speaking during the "High-Level Addresses on AI Governance," she shared Taiwan’s practical experience in AI policy, data governance, and the development of traditional Chinese corpora with senior officials and academic experts from the EU and other nations, further strengthening Taiwan's exchanges and engagement with the international digital community.

The Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA) noted that the Privacy Symposium is one of the most high-profile and influential multilateral dialogue platforms in the fields of global data governance and innovative technology compliance. This year’s symposium featured participation from organizations including the European Data Protection Board (EDPB), the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), France’s National Commission on Informatics and Liberty (CNIL), the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), and Italy’s Data Protection Authority (GPDP). Moreover, MODA’s invitation to the event underscores the international recognition of Taiwan’s achievements in data governance.

Deputy Minister Hou began by introducing her presentation titled "AI for Taiwan: From Talents, Data to Governance," sharing Taiwan’s experience in AI governance. She highlighted that Taiwan promulgated the “Artificial Intelligence Basic Act" in January this year, establishing the legal framework for AI oversight. Grounded in the concept of collaborative governance, Taiwan is working across all sectors to navigate the opportunities and challenges of the AI era, ensuring a balance between innovative development and safety.

Deputy Minister Hou further explained that, as Taiwan plays a pivotal role in the global AI supply chain, MODA is actively cultivating AI talent and bolstering industrial competitiveness through specialized courses, internships, and cross-disciplinary competitions. She also noted the drafting of the "Act on Promoting the Development of Data Innovation and Utilization," which establishes a government data integration mechanism grounded in Privacy by Design (PbD) to facilitate data flow and innovation across agencies. Furthermore, she highlighted the integration of high-quality traditional Chinese data into the "Taiwan Sovereign AI Training Corpus" and invited all sectors to utilize these resources.

The "High-Level Addresses on AI Governance" session was moderated by Sébastien Ziegler, Chair of the Privacy Symposium. Joining the dialogue were several prominent international figures, including Sirpa Rautio, Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA); Alberto Gago Fernández, Director of the Spanish Agency for the Supervision of Artificial Intelligence (AESIA); Philippe Dufresne, Privacy Commissioner of Canada; Michael McNamara, Member of the European Parliament; and Mario Hernández Ramos, Chair of the Committee on Artificial Intelligence (CAI) of the Council of Europe, alongside other global agency heads and experts.

MODA stated that the dialogues and exchanges with high-level officials during this symposium have laid a solid foundation for future bilateral and multilateral cooperation. MODA will continue to deepen international exchanges and engagement and, guided by the principle of collaborative governance, align closely with global standards amidst the rise of AI to jointly foster a "trustworthy" digital environment.