BOGOTA (Reuters) – Britain’s Prince Harry urged caution over artificial intelligence and talked of social media as divisive during a panel in Colombia’s capital Bogota alongside his wife Meghan and the Andean country’s Vice President Francia Marquez.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who stepped away from official royal duties in January 2020 and now live in California, arrived in Colombia on Thursday at the invitation of Marquez and will tour the country.
During a panel discussion at Bogota’s EAN university on Thursday evening, Harry raised his concerns over the future of AI.
“AI is scary and I think a lot of people are scared and uncertain,” the prince said.
“One of my biggest worries is that for as long as social media is the way that it is, we will forever be divided. We’re no longer arguing over facts, we’re debating and arguing over misinterpreted information,” he added.
Harry and Meghan founded the U.S.-based Archewell Foundation, a non-profit that partners with charitable organizations around the world.
After being greeted by Marquez in Bogota, the royal couple visited a school and spoke to pupils.
They also took in a traditional Colombian dance performance, where Harry clapped his hands alongside Marquez, the country’s first Black woman vice president and a former environmental activist.
The couple are expected to travel this weekend to the western city of Cali to participate in the Petronio Alvarez festival, which celebrates Afro-Colombian music and culture.
“Thank you for visiting Colombia, for being here, and for your willingness to come to share, and also to build links to work on problems that affect humanity, such as cyber-bullying, violence on social media, and discrimination,” Marquez said.
(Reporting by Bogota bureau; Editing by Frances Kerry)
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