The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has opened a Public Comment proceeding on proposed updates to Specification 14 of the 2026 Base Generic Top-Level Domain (gTLD) Registry Agreement, seeking feedback on new provisions related to variant TLDs and fee structures following recent Board resolutions.
Vietnam has approved its first comprehensive law on artificial intelligence, setting out a national framework that combines risk-based safeguards with incentives for innovation. The legislation establishes centralised oversight, sandbox testing, and new funding mechanisms, and will take effect in March 2026.
At the EU–Nigeria Digital Open Day in Brussels, the European Union announced an additional €45 million to support Nigeria’s expanding digital economy, including preparatory work for a 90,000-km fibre-optic backbone and nationwide digital-skills development.
The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has published a policy explaining how cyber-enabled conduct can fall within existing international crimes under the Rome Statute. The document does not expand the Court’s jurisdiction, but sets out how digital activities may be relevant to investigations, prosecutions, and evidence.
Governments participating in an international AI cooperation network have agreed to strengthen their joint work on measuring and evaluating advanced artificial intelligence systems. The group has also confirmed a change in mandate and name, reflecting the growing importance of robust, science-based approaches to AI assessment.
ICANN has launched a request for proposal to select a provider that will conduct safeguard assessments for applied-for strings in the 2026 round of the New Generic Top-Level Domain Program. The selected provider will evaluate whether applications require risk-based public interest commitments before moving to contracting.
The European Commission has launched a formal antitrust probe into Google to assess whether the company leveraged its dominant position to access publisher and YouTube content on unfair terms for developing its artificial intelligence services, including AI Overviews and AI Mode.
The country becomes the 18th signatory to the first binding international treaty on artificial intelligence and human rights.
China’s Cyberspace Administration has launched a public consultation on draft rules governing how organisations must assess and report network data security risks. The proposal sets detailed obligations for processors of important data, introduces oversight mechanisms for third-party assessors, and outlines new enforcement tools.
APC and Derechos Digitales have submitted a joint contribution to the UN Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development, examining how artificial intelligence affects cultural rights and equitable development. The submission argues that AI can both support and undermine cultural expression, identity and participation, depending on how systems are designed, governed and deployed. It calls for rights-based, feminist and culturally aware approaches to AI policy to ensure that technological development strengthens, rather than erodes, the right to development.
Civil Society Alliances for Digital Empowerment (CADE) is a project co-funded by the European Union.
