American tech and Hollywood push AI trust message in Brussels

American technology executives, filmmakers and European policymakers met in Brussels on June 24 to argue that AI progress depends on trust, stronger governance and transatlantic cooperation. The summit also launched a Digital Trust Manifesto calling for human-centered AI, meaningful consent, transparency and accountability.

Why it matters: - The Brussels meeting framed AI governance as a transatlantic issue, not just a European or U.S. policy fight. - Speakers argued that trust, not fragmentation, is the path to scaling AI responsibly across borders. - The discussion landed days after G7 leaders put artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and trusted data near the top of the global agenda.

What happened: - American technology executives, Hollywood creators, European policymakers and civil society leaders gathered in Brussels on June 24 for the Digital Trust Summit Brussels 2026. - The event took place at TheMerode. - Organizers said the summit focused on AI trust, stronger governance and closer cooperation between Europe and the United States. - Participants included Cate Blanchett, Darren Aronofsky, Members of the European Parliament Eva Maydell, Brando Benifei, Sergey Lagodinsky and Veronika Cifrová Ostrihoňová, and senior European Commission officials Despina Spanou and Renate Nikolay. - The summit also drew executives and leaders from Rubrik, Microsoft, Diligent, Collibra, Go Vocal, Dembrane, Fragomen, VIB, Convergent Computing and other organizations.

The details: - Summit discussions covered AI governance, cyber resilience, trusted data, copyright and creativity, board-level oversight of AI systems and practical frameworks for balancing innovation with accountability. - Dominique Shelton Leipzig, founder of the Digital Trust Summit and CEO of Global Data Innovation, said the real challenge is whether Europe and America can cooperate while competing. - Shelton Leipzig said innovation scales at the speed of trust, not the speed of technology. - Participating organizations launched the Digital Trust Manifesto as a transatlantic commitment to human-centered AI, meaningful consent, creative rights, transparency and accountability. - Founding signatories include Global Data Innovation and Diligent in the United States, Go Vocal, Dembrane and Tectonica AI in Europe, and Association Civic Tech Europe. - The organizations behind the manifesto support governments, public institutions, businesses and more than 750,000 corporate leaders worldwide. - The manifesto says successful AI deployment will happen at the speed of trust and calls for systems that protect human dignity, support creativity and maintain public confidence as adoption accelerates.

Between the lines: - The event was as much about geopolitics as technology, with speakers pushing back against the idea that countries should respond to AI competition by pulling apart. - The summit linked AI policy to broader concerns about sovereignty, access to frontier models, cyber resilience and technological dependence. - The presence of entertainment figures alongside policymakers and executives suggested an effort to broaden AI trust debates beyond the tech sector. - Shelton Leipzig cast Europe’s regulatory influence as a model for a new kind of global standard-setting, which she called a “Trust Effect.”

What's next: - The manifesto creates a public transatlantic signal for organizations that want to align around trust-based AI principles. - The summit's framing suggests continued pressure for cooperation on AI governance, even as governments debate access, competition and national security. - Global Data Innovation and NewFrames co-organized the summit in coordination with the Association of Civic Tech Europe, with TheMerode serving as location sponsor.

The bottom line: - The Brussels summit tried to turn AI trust into a shared European-U.S. policy and business agenda, arguing that credibility will shape who leads the AI economy.