 Welcome to the ITU studio in Geneva. I'm very pleased to be joined in the studio today by Stephen Burrow, who is chief executive officer of Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority of the Bahamas. On the occasion of GSR 2018, welcome. Thank you. Thank you, Max. It's great to be here in Geneva. Now, well, in fact, last time we saw each other was in the Bahamas where you graciously hosted the event. It was a very wonderful event. I just wanted to talk to you about your impressions so far of this one. It's been a real learning experience, you know, and continuing in many ways on the themes that we discussed last year and at previous GSRs, and looking at new technologies and emerging trends, you know, as regulators that we're always chasing. I'm particularly happy that I seem to have brought some of the Bahamas weather to Geneva with me as well. Absolutely. Now, in terms of emerging technologies, how crucial are emerging technologies such as AI, incentive of things in building confidence and security in the use of ICTs? I know that subject has been talked about quite heavily here. Yeah, and, you know, we are very much learning as regulators how important these new technologies are. You know, our regulatory frameworks are really, really trying to catch up as they always are with the changes in our regulated sectors that will be led by these new technologies. So artificial intelligence, AI, has driven a whole new range of both threats and opportunities in ICTs. And, you know, the extent to which when you combine that with the internet of things and with the fact that everyone's home, everyone's person, very often, has multiple connected devices. And you have not only people in that space, but you have these new intelligences, these new learning machines, which create a whole new wealth of opportunity. And as regulators, not just ICT regulators, but we're now dealing with the police, we're dealing with all these different agencies that have to find ways to combat to address these changes. And, you know, it's very, it's just important for us to understand them and to be able to ensure that people understand what the risks are, but also where the protections are so that they feel confident and able to use their devices to, you know, walk around with, we've heard interesting stories of how, you know, the technology in a fish tank can be accessed. Or everything you have is potentially an area of opportunity, but potentially an area of threat. And we as regulators really have to make a better effort, I would say, or more effort, faster to adopt, embrace the technology so that we can deal with our stakeholders in an effective way. And how you best can be equipped to do that, do you think? Well, I think one thing is we have to adopt AI ourselves. Within the government and regulatory frameworks, we have to have our own intelligences. The simple reality is no human can keep up with a machine for speed. We may be smarter than them, or, you know, we've had a lot of discussions about where the skill sets and where the person fits in this space. So, you know, computers aren't quite taking over, but certainly they have made it much more necessary for us to be quick, for us to be faster, for us to detect threats, for us to respond. So I think one of the key things is many regulatory agencies or law enforcement agencies and so on are going to have to adopt AI. We're going to have to find ways to create reactive or detection and prediction systems that will include the new technologies so that we can respond to those others who have them. So as the private sector adopts these technologies to bring more and more benefits to people, we've got to be prepared as well. What about in the Bahamas? What are going to be your principal concerns? Well, you know, step one for us in the Bahamas is always the challenge as a small country of resources. So I think the key issue for us really is to develop the expertise we need, which is why being here is so important, to develop the expertise both technically and also to understand what we need to do to our frameworks. We have legal frameworks that are not designed for AI. They couldn't be. Hopefully they are flexible enough for us to be able to adapt rather than have to come up with new ones. But you know, even the simple issues of who are the regulators, how do the regulators work together to make sure that we're all doing our part? Because I'm pretty sure as an ICT regulator alone, we couldn't address this threat. But we have to work with other regulators. You know, I remember a couple GSRs ago, the discussion on collaborative regulation, which I think becomes even more critical now. Because we no longer regulate a separate sector. We regulate the sector that brings all the others together. You know, and that is something that has really struck home as we talk about new technologies, as we talk about internet of things. It's not internet of computers. It's not internet of phones. It's the internet of things. So each of those things can be differently regulated as well. We are really in new space. And it's changing faster than it's ever changed before. Your Bahamian tings. Exactly, tings. Yes, fantastic. And in terms of, you mentioned it briefly, but in terms of attending this event, what makes this event special? Why have you traveled all the way to be here? And why did you obviously host us in the Bahamas last time? What makes this a key event in your calendar? Well, you know, as ICT regulators, we've always appreciated that the ITU brings together more stakeholders than any other in this area of endeavor. If you're talking about ICTs, this is the place where you get the government, the policymakers. You can speak to them. You get the experts through the ITU's work and standardization, radio communications, and so on. You really get the best people from the industry as well. And as a regulator, it's really valuable when those people are in the room telling you about the technologies. I had the pleasure of moderating a panel yesterday of experts in areas that I would never have met in one place anywhere else. And as we sit through these panels, we understand as regulators that we have to learn things we didn't know before, or at least we have to know the people who know these things. And this is a fantastic meeting place for all of those different people that we need to know as regulators. What do you hope will come from this particular GSR, or perhaps a few GSRs ahead in terms of the landscape itself? Well, I think the internet of things and the internet generally has taught us that we operate as a world, not as countries. And what I really hope to see and what I hope to get as a single participant is really just more of the collaboration of the international melting pot of people and ideas so that we can work on problems across borders. And the Bahamas is a small island developing state. We have hardly enough people to fill our own space and to do what we do. But with the help of our neighbors, with the help of people all over the world, we have very close ties. We're building great relationships with similar countries everywhere. And again, this is the space where we get the opportunity to meet them, because they come here too. Stephen Brewer, thank you very much indeed. Thank you. And do check out more fascinating content, such as Stevens and his colleagues, on the ITU YouTube channel and on the ITU SoundCloud channel as well. Thank you. Thanks.