The EU on Wednesday unveiled its strategy for artificial intelligence (AI) as it seeks to catch up with China and the US, and dispel fears of Big Brother-like control.
The EU said that building trust would be a guiding principle, with higher-risk uses of AI in health, security or transport facing stricter demands on transparency and human oversight. Lower-risk applications would be largely left alone.
The other ambition would be to offer companies and universities access to the mountain of data that drives AI — with the bloc considering forcing technology giants to share data or face sanctions.
Photo: AFP
“We want the application of these new technologies to deserve the trust of our citizens,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters.
“This is why we are promoting a responsible, human-centric approach to artificial intelligence,” she said.
EU officials are eager to define the rules of AI and push their champions, acknowledging that Europe and its companies have been outflanked by Silicon Valley’s Google, Facebook Inc and Apple Inc, as well as Chinese players like Tencent Holdings Ltd (騰訊).
“It’s not us that need to adapt to today’s platforms. It’s the platforms that need to adapt to Europe,” EU Commissioner for International Market and Services Thierry Breton told a news conference.
“The battle for industrial data starts now and Europe will be the main battlefield. Europe has everything it needs to be a leader,” Breton said.
The proposals are the first step in a long road to legislation, with Brussels hoping for draft laws by the end of the year.
The far-ranging plans would face furious lobbying from corporate giants and governments, and require ratification by the European Parliament.
“Artificial intelligence is not good or bad in itself. It all depends on why and how it is used,” EU Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager said.
The commission, the EU’s executive arm, would seek to repeat the impact of General Data Protection Regulation — its regulation on data protection that has become a global standard.
EU officials refrained from asking for curbs on facial recognition, one of the most controversial examples of artificial intelligence.
For now, they said existing legislation already limits its uses, but the bloc would start a debate on the topic to determine where European citizens would accept it.
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