STRASBOURG: European Parliament lawmakers on Thursday took a crucial first step towards EU-wide regulation of ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence systems that Brussels hopes to put speedily in place.
Parliamentary committees on civil liberties and consumer protection overwhelmingly voted for a position text calling for curbs on how AI can be used in Europe, while still fostering innovation in the sector.
The text is to be put to the full parliament next month for adoption before negotiations with EU member states on a final law.
Lawmakers called Thursday's vote "historic" and hoped it would lead to "the world's first rules on artificial intelligence".
Their text picks up the main lines from a European Commission proposal made two years ago, but suggests adding bans on biometric surveillance, emotion recognition and predictive policing AI systems.
It seeks to put generative AI systems such as ChatGPT and Midjourney in a category requiring special transparency measures, such as notifications to users that the output was made by a machine, not a human.
The parliament's text also seeks additional criteria as to what constitutes a "high-risk" AI area of application, which could reduce the scope of that designation.
The commission proposed list covers AI in critical infrastructure, education, human resources, public order and migration management.
But the MEPs want an additional threshold to be met, requiring that threats to safety, health or fundamental rights are also deemed to be in play.
The CCIA, a European industry lobby group representing major tech companies, said that, while "the parliament made some useful improvements to the text", it was "abandoning the risk-based structure" of the European Commission's proposal.
"The best way for the EU to inspire other jurisdictions is by ensuring that new regulation will enable, rather than inhibit, the development of useful AI applications," said CCIA policy manager for Europe, Boniface de Champris.
The European Consumer Organisation though endorsed the parliament injecting "beefed-up protections for consumers" in its text compared to the commission one.
"Although AI may improve our lives in many ways, there are well-founded concerns that AI systems can also harm consumers. People must be properly protected against the risks of these new technologies," said Ursula Pachl, deputy director of the organisation. - AFP
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
