The escalating electricity demands of artificial intelligence systems are raising concerns about the technologys sustainability but thats apparently of little concern to the governments of the US and the UK.They were among the invitees at the Paris AI Action Summit that refused to sign the Statement on Inclusive and Sustainable Artificial Intelligence for People and the Planet, the summits final declaration. The statement did win the approval of 58 countries, including China and India, and two supranational groups, the 27-member European Union (EU) and the 55-member African Union.Thats more than signed the Bletchley Declaration by countries attending the AI Safety Summit organized by the UK in November 2023. The US and UK did sign that, as did the EU, China, and India, among others.Signatories of the Paris summit statement agreed on six priorities:Promoting AI accessibility to reduce digital dividesEnsuring AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure, and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for allMaking innovation in AI thrive by enabling conditions for its development and avoiding market concentration driving industrial recovery and developmentEncouraging AI deployment that positively shapes the future of work and labor markets and delivers opportunity for sustainable growthMaking AI sustainable for people and the planetReinforcing international cooperation to promote coordination in international governanceInclusion excludedThe US refusal to sign was likely triggered by the second priority of making AI inclusive: President Trump has ordered his administration to eliminate any reference to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) from government websites.But safety and sustainability are also not acceptable goals for the US, according to Vice President JD Vance, who addressed the summit on Tuesday morning.We stand now at the frontier of an AI industry that is hungry for reliable power and high-quality semiconductors, Vance said. If too many of our friends are deindustrializing on the one hand and chasing reliable power out of their nations and off their grids with the other, the AI future is not going to be won by handwringing about safety.Vances remarks about chasing out reliable power are likely a reference to moves in Europe to reduce reliance on electricity generated by burning oil and gas, European supplies of which have been disrupted by Russias invasion of Ukraine, in favor of renewable but weather-dependent sources such as solar- or wind-powered systems.Coordination in AI governance is also going to be a point of contention. Even as the EU AI Acts provisions begin to enter force, Vance warned summit attendees that Excessive regulation in the AI sector could kill a transformative industry just as its taking off. The US, he said, will make every effort to encourage pro-growth AI policies, and Id like to see that deregulatory flavor making its way into a lot of the conversations at this conference.According to the BBC, the UK government also cited global governance, along with national security concerns, as reasons it refused to sign the Paris summits declaration.America firstVance was clear that his top priority is not accessibility or inclusion, but the US.This administration will ensure that American AI technology continues to be the gold standard worldwide, and that we are the partner of choice for others, foreign countries and certainly businesses as they expand their own use of AI, he said.But access to that technology will not be open to all.Some authoritarian regimes have stolen and used AI to strengthen their military, intelligence, and surveillance capabilities; capture foreign data; and create propaganda to undermine other nations national security, Vance told summit attendees, adding, This administration will block such efforts. We will safeguard American AI and chip technologies from theft and misuse, work with our allies and partners to strengthen and extend these protections, and close pathways to adversaries attaining AI capabilities that threaten all of our people.Billions in fundingShortly after Trumps inauguration, he announced that US AI companies would invest $500 billion in Project Stargate, designed to ramp up AI infrastructure in the US although even with support from investors in Japan and the United Arab Emirates, barely a quarter of that sum is committed so far.Vance predicted that investment would continue apace: Of the $700 billion, give or take, that is estimated to be spent on AI in 2028, over half of it will likely be invested in the US, he said.But the US doesnt have a monopoly on big projects. At the Paris summit, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen announced the EUs intention to mobilize 200 billion ($207 billion) in investment in AI.Theres some sleight of hand going on there too: While Von der Leyen talks of mobilizing 200 billion, only 20 billion of that is public money, and shes expecting private enterprise to make up the rest.