‘Conflicts over control of oil have scarred the world for decades. No one yet worries that wars will be fought over data.’
The alert about data wars comes from The Economist’s recent coverage of data, the fuel of the future. When I read the article a few days ago, I wondered if The Economist’s website had been hacked or whether I’d been redirected to a fake news site.
In addition to the alarming atypical line on the potential of data wars, The Economist made a rather forceful plea for more regulation of the fast-emerging data economy. This call is a firm departure from its traditional position on digital growth, one I have observed for the past 25 years, which argues for minimal regulation.
After my initial reaction (System 1 thinking, to link to David Kahneman’s theory of thought), a more careful read (System 2) helped me realise that this transition in The Economist’s coverage of digital issues made much sense.
In the early days of the Internet growth, regulation could have been damaging. The fast growth of the digital economy proved that this approach was the right one. Today, the limits of the ‘invisible digital hand’ drive the need to intervene. Governments are spurred to take action, but at the same time, to tackle the data economy with care. A heavy regulatory approach could impede future growth just as much.
Data will impact diplomacy in three main ways
The Economist’s signalling of potential international conflicts around data reconfirms both the need for data to be prominent on diplomatic agendas, and the importance of diplomacy. One starting point is to understand the ways in which data is impacting diplomacy.
First, data will determine the position and role of countries in global affairs. As access to oil pipelines affected geopolitics in the past, access to the main Internet cables matter strongly in the data-driven era. Similarly, smart data-driven companies will determine a country’s position in emerging geo-economics.
Secondly, diplomatic negotiations will increasingly tackle new topics related to data, ranging from cybersecurity, to privacy protection and digital commerce. Data diplomacy is entering the premier league of international politics alongside health, migration, food, humanitarian assistance, and other traditional diplomatic issues. Dealing with data will require new diplomatic skills and approaches. For example, governments will need to collaborate with the business community, which handles most of the data; with civil society, for whom the protection of privacy and other digital rights are of utmost importance; and the technical community, which manages the flow of data.
Third, data provides diplomats with new tools to make diplomatic activities more efficient and effective, including data mining and artificial intelligence. For example, reporting is the lifeblood of the diplomatic world. Diplomats report to the UN on their country’s progress in achieving the sustainable development goals or implementing international conventions. They report to their capitals on visits, meetings, and negotiations. Many hours of valuable time are spent drafting, reading, and analysing reports. Smart data management can facilitate diplomatic reporting; freed-up time can be more valuably spent on building trust with other countries, negotiating and searching for compromise during a crisis, and in tackling other global problems.
These changes also create the need for diplomats and policymakers to develop new skills that would help them better understand and negotiate critical issues related to data.
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The three aspects of data diplomacy – changing environment, new topics, and new tools – are being tackled in DiploFoundation’s research on data diplomacy. Learn more about data diplomacy, and read a more in-depth analysis of the three aspects of data diplomacy.