In keeping with the tradition of the Swiss IGF, the various stakeholders, ranging from researchers to entrepreneurs and professionals, were able to submit their topic suggestions via a call for issues. The subjects for the various sessions of the Swiss IGF 2024 were then prepared on that basis. This year, many of the discussions will revolve around artificial intelligence (AI) and, in particular, its regulation at national and international level. Debates will also cover topics such as cybersecurity, sustainability, disinformation, data protection and many more.

The Forum will be opened by Bernard Maissen, Director of the Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM). At the end of the event, the 'Messages from Bern', summarising the main conclusions of the debates, will be adopted and feed into discussions at the UN Global Internet Governance Forum (IGF) and the European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG).

Organised with the support of OFCOM, the Swiss IGF brings together all interested parties from public administration, politics, business, science and civil society to consider practical solutions to the challenges and opportunities presented by digitalisation and the internet. The Swiss IGF is a spin-off of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF), which was set up to discuss global rules for the internet and the digital space.

Practical information

The Swiss IGF is open to all and free of charge. Participants can take part in the debates as equal discussion partners, either in person at Welle 7 in Bern or online. The Swiss IGF will be conducted in three languages (German, French and English) with partial simultaneous interpretation. Anyone interested in taking part either in person or online can register until 31 May at www.igf.swiss. The detailed programme is also available on this website. Throughout the event, the hashtag #SwissIGF24 will be used to communicate on LinkedIn (@Swiss IGF).

Discussions on artificial intelligence and its regulation at the Swiss IGF