Editorial – Digital Fortress

Twenty years down the road, work will be optional. Those who want to work will do so as if it were a hobby! This is one of Elon Musk’s latest predictions. He believes that AI and robots will take over. Far from being a billionaire’s “fantasy,” the words of the X boss show the full impact that new technologies will have on our lives. The hyper-power of social media, backed by increasingly powerful algorithms, is already shaking up several areas.
In recent years, there have been growing warnings about the risks of large-scale disinformation. Both on the international stage and in Morocco, academic studies are looking into the subject. The idea is to identify the most relevant way to curb the risks associated with the use of new technologies, with a view to digital sovereignty. In this race, no country can act alone, yet for the moment, regulatory experiments remain mainly national. However, content is often produced elsewhere, escaping any national control. And attempts at a coordinated response are hampered by constraints on the ground (e.g., the EU has just postponed the implementation of the law on high-risk AI systems). And where does Morocco fit into all this? The Kingdom can leverage a range of tools, including regulation and local capacity building, not to mention international cooperation. In an era of borderless platforms, sovereignty also depends on coalitions. At a time when disinformation is becoming a mechanism for destabilization (social, political, economic), Morocco must capitalize on what has been achieved so far to further strengthen its digital fortress. This must not be isolated, but backed by a strategy of collective immunity. It is a matter of national security, but also a symbol of a shared destiny.