The GSR is an annual event bringing together heads of national regulatory authorities from both developed and developing countries and has earned a reputation as the global venue for regulators to share their views and experiences as part of the worldwide community of regulators.  The meeting fosters an open dialogue between regulators and key ICT stakeholders: the private sector, investors and consumers.

The 18th Global Symposium for Regulators (GSR-18) brought together more than 600 participants from more than 120 countries to Geneva, Switzerland, from 9 to 12 July to discuss new regulatory frontiers in an increasingly dynamic and interconnected world. The goal of the forum, the world's largest specialized gathering of information and communication technology (ICT) regulators and policy specialists, was to collaborate on regulatory measures that would leverage ICTs to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

GSR-18 also served to equip policy-makers, regulators, and private-sector professionals with a deeper understanding of the benefits and risks of new technological innovations. Participants discussed new regulatory frontiers to achieve digital transformation, examining the implications of emerging technologies including ArtificiaI Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (loT), and fifth-generation mobile technology (5G), as well key issues including cybersecurity, privacy, and trust. Responding to emerging technologies GSR-18 featured a focus on the rapid growth of emerging technologies and their potential to improve lives through increases in data, productivity and connectivity. As several speakers noted, Internet of Things (loT) connected devices will soon number more than 20 billion, the development of 5G platforms could drive trillions of dollars in revenue by the end of the next decade, and AI is on track to impact on the majority of industries worldwide.

Throughout GSR-18's four days of interactive panels, break-out sessions and ongoing dialogue, there remained a common theme: a shared commitment to achieving ITU's central mission to leverage ICTs to improve lives. To that end, GSR-18 produced reports, discussion papers and the GSR-18 Best Practice Guidelines on new regulatory frontiers to achieve digital transformation, outputs that reflect the collaborative spirit of the Symposium.