The International Visitor Leadership Program delegation engaged in high-level dialogue on AI innovation, security and global public-private partnership
On July 7, the Johns Creek Chamber of Commerce hosted a delegation of senior artificial intelligence policymakers and academics from four countries as part of the U.S. Department of State‘s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), Freedom 250: AI Innovation and Security initiative.
The event, held at the Chamber’s headquarters on Johns Creek Parkway, brought together international leaders for a substantive two-hour dialogue on AI innovation, national security, workforce development and the role of public-private partnership in shaping the global AI landscape.
Participating nations
The delegation included senior representatives from Egypt, the Philippines, Trinidad & Tobago and Uruguay — professionals who are actively shaping artificial intelligence regulatory frameworks, national AI strategies and educational policy in their home countries and regions.
Among the participants was Dr. Craig Ramlal, executive director of the Artificial Intelligence Innovation Centre at the University of the West Indies and a member of the United Nations Secretary-General‘s High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence, whose recommendations formed Objective 5 of the UN Global Digital Compact adopted by 193 member states.
The conversation was described by all attendees as cerebral, candid and wide-ranging — touching on AI sovereignty, the geopolitics of large language models, workforce displacement, ethical AI frameworks across diverse cultural contexts and what it means for a local business community to engage responsibly with emerging technology.
“Today was one of the most substantive conversations this Chamber has ever hosted,” said David Dabo, chair-elect of the Johns Creek Chamber of Commerce.
“These are the people who are writing the rules of AI for their nations and regions,” Dabo continued. “The fact that they chose to spend part of their time in America with us — in Johns Creek — says something important about what this community represents on a global stage.”
Trinidad-Tobago at the Johns Creek Chamber
In a significant development, the representative from Trinidad & Tobago expressed a formal interest in establishing an ongoing presence at the Johns Creek Chamber of Commerce — a connection that would link the Chamber directly to the Caribbean’s leading AI innovation center and to the broader network of Caribbean regional policy institutions, including the Caribbean Telecommunications Union‘s AI Task Force and CARICOM.
“This is exactly the kind of relationship that makes Johns Creek different,” said Richard Brooks, management consultant for the Johns Creek Chamber of Commerce. “We didn’t just host a visit. We started what could be a lasting institutional partnership between this community and the Caribbean’s most significant AI research center — at a time when AI is reshaping every economy on the planet.”
Global connections
The AI delegation visit was the latest in a series of high-profile international engagements organized by the Johns Creek Chamber, which has previously hosted delegations from Serbia, the Czech Republic, Quebec, Burkina Faso, Slovakia and Ukraine.
The Chamber’s International Business Development Council, led in collaboration with the City of Johns Creek‘s economic development office, has positioned Johns Creek as one of the most internationally engaged business communities in the Southeast.
Johns Creek is home to a significant concentration of global life sciences, technology and healthcare companies — including Alcon and Boston Scientific — and has been recognized as one of America’s premier cities for business, quality of life and international commerce.
About the delegation — Freedom 250: AI Innovation and Security
- From Egypt: Khaled Mahmoud Amin Wali, director, Department of Communication Development & IT, Arab League General Secretariat
- From the Philippines: Ela Chaves, development management officer, University of the Philippines
- From Trinidad & Tobago: Dr. Craig Ramlal, executive director, AI Innovation Centre, University of the West Indies; chair, Caribbean AI Task Force; UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Advisory Body on AI
- From Uruguay: Romina Tamara Pons Giorgi, pedagogical specialist in computational thinking & AI, CEIBAL
In a news release about the meeting, The Johns Creek Chamber of Commerce shared that they will “continue to facilitate engagement with the delegation and explore opportunities for ongoing collaboration with the Trinidad & Tobago AI Innovation Centre and other international partners.”
Member businesses interested in the Chamber’s international programming are encouraged to contact the Chamber directly.
For more about the Johns Creek Chamber of Commerce, visit johnscreekchamber.com.
