Working Group on Artificial Intelligence and its Implications for the Information and Communication Space

 The rapid development and advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), generative artificial intelligence and even artificial general intelligence (AGI) is transforming the global information and communication space at a pace nearly unseen among recent technological innovations. 

Generative AI tools enable anyone to become an easy creator of content. Yet, AI can invent sources, create misinformation and deep fakes, amplifying the dangers of disinformation and information chaos, which puts increasing strain on our democratic institutions.

AI systems are taking crucial decisions in the information space, as the sheer amount of information available and content created exceeds human capacities to consume, sort, moderate and verify. Currently, mainly private enterprises are deciding the rules of the game, including which safety and ethical guardrails they choose to implement.

Our democratic institutions must lead the development and implementation of  democratic principles and rules to govern the development, deployment and use of all aspects of AI in the information space. Without guidance – including regulatory obligations – from our democratic institutions, developers and deployers of AI systems risk undermining the very foundations of our democracies, rooted in a credible and legitimate information ecosystem.

AI is a public good and we must ensure democratic control over AI in the information and communication space

Scope

The Policy Working Group developed a policy framework that provides policy recommendations in the following four critical areas:

Development and deployment of AI systems

Recommendations for putting in place guardrails in the design, development and deployment of AI systems to reduce their risks to the information space, respect data privacy  and intellectual property, and promote transparency, diversity and representativeness of AI systems.

Accountability regimes

Recommendations for putting in place accountability and liability regimes for the developers, deployers, users, and subjects of AI systems with regards to the outputs generated and decisions taken by AI and redress mechanisms.

 Ethical incentives 

Recommendations to put in place incentive schemes encouraging the ethical development, deployment and use of AI. This also includes recommendations on AI literacy as a critical tool.

Governance of AI 

Recommendations for the governance and democratic oversight of AI systems at both national and international level. This also includes recommendations to strenghten the watch dog role of civil society, researchers and other stakeholders.

POLICY WORKING GROUP

Co-Chairs

Laura Schertel Mendes

BRAZIL

Professor of Law at the Brazilian Institute for Development, Education and Research

Jonathan Stray

United states

Senior Scientist, UC Berkeley Center for Human-Compatible AI

Working Group Members

Rachel Adams

SOUTH AFRICA

Director, Global Index on Responsible AI and African Observatory on Responsible AI, Research ICT Africa

Linda Bonyo

KENYA

Founding Director at Africa Law Tech and the Founder of the Lawyers Hub 

Marta Cantero Gamito

italy

Professor of IT Law, University of Tartu; Research Fellow, Florence School of Transnational Governance (Chair on AI & Democracy, EUI)

Alistair Knott

New zealand

School of Engineering and Computer Science, Victoria University of Wellington

Syed Nazakat

india

Founder and CEO, DataLEADS

Alice Oh

KOREA

Professor, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Alejandro Pisanty

MEXICO

Faculty of Chemistry, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)

Gabriela Ramos

Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences, UNESCO 

Achim Rettinger

GERMANY

Computational Linguistics, Trier University 

Edward Santow

AUSTRALIA

Co-Director, Human Technology Institute, University of Technology Sydney

Suzanne Vergnolle

FRANCE

Associate Professor in Technology law at the Cnam Institute

Claes de Vreese

Netherlands

Distinguished University Professor of AI and Society, University of Amsterdam