Sovereign AI: Disentangling Rhetoric from Reality

2026-04-01 - 2026-05-30

Online

 

Sovereign AI: Disentangling Rhetoric from Reality

The Chip Era and Digital Governance Forum 12
Date and Time: April 14, 2026, 10:00 - 12:00 AM, Taipei Time (GMT+8)

Format: Online

Online meeting Link: https://meet.google.com/mvd-ttme-eka

Forum Language: English

Synopsis

AI sovereignty refers to a nation’s ability to develop, control, and govern its own artificial intelligence systems, infrastructure, and data—rather than relying on foreign technology providers. It includes building domestic data centers, training local AI models, securing semiconductor supply chains, and ensuring that AI systems reflect national laws and cultural values.

This idea has gained momentum amid intensifying global competition and regulatory initiatives such as the EU AI Act. Supporters argue that sovereignty strengthens national security, economic resilience, and technological independence. Critics caution that it may raise costs, reduce international collaboration, and fragment the global AI ecosystem.

By bringing together scholars and practitioners, this forum will explore whether AI sovereignty is a genuine path toward resilience and independence—or simply political rhetoric in the age of digital governance.

Speakers

💬Megha Shrivastava

Assistant Professor, PES University, Bengaluru

Dr. Megha Shrivastava is an Assistant Professor at PES University, Bengaluru. She has been a recipient of the 2025 MoFA Taiwan Fellowship, 2025 US-India AI Fellow and 2024-2025 Network of Advanced Study of China Fellowship at the Bengaluru based Takshashila Institution. Her work focuses on China's ICT development, US-China relations, Taiwan's role in global supply chains and global AI governance.

💬Nistha Kumari Singh

PhD Scholar, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India

Nistha Kumari Singh is a PhD scholar and Dr. TMA Pai Fellow in the Department of Geopolitics and International Relations at the Manipal Institute of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE, Institution of Eminence), Manipal, Karnataka, India. She is also a Network for the Advancement of Technology Geopolitics (NAST) Fellow (2025–2026 cohort) at the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru, India. Her research areas include U.S.-China strategic competition, cybersecurity, and critical infrastructure.

Moderator 

💬Dolma Tsering 

Research Fellow, International Center for Cultural Studies, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taiwan.

 

Organizer:

National Yang-Ming Chiao-Tung University International Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS-NYCU),

Sub-project II : The Chip Era and Digital Governance 

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｜主辦單位｜

國立陽明交通大學文化研究國際中心  
子計畫二〔晶片時代與數位治理〕

計畫主持人Principal Investigator｜
劉紀蕙Joyce C.H. Liu

 

｜Organizer｜

International Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS), National Yang-Ming Chiao Tung University

Subproject II: The Chip Era and Digital Governance (Principal Investigator: Joyce C.H. Liu)

｜ Funding Source｜
MOE-SPROUT 2.0, Conflict, Justice, Decolonization: Asia in Transition in the 21st Century
ICCS Director and Principal Investigator: Joyce C.H. Liu

Sub-project 2: The Chip Era and Digital Governance