A parliamentary committee in the UK has called for the introduction of new legislation to Regulate Artificial Intelligence (AI) in order to prevent the country from falling behind the European Union (EU) and the United States in shaping AI regulations. The committee’s report highlighted that the government’s current approach, outlined in a white paper, may not keep up with the pace of AI development, particularly in comparison to the efforts of the EU and the US to set international standards.

The EU is actively pushing forward with the AI Act, while the White House in the US has published a blueprint for an AI bill of rights, and US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has proposed a framework for developing AI regulations. To address this challenge, the UK government was urged to introduce an AI bill in the king’s speech, which outlines the government’s legislative agenda for the coming year.

The report also listed 12 governance challenges for AI, including bias in AI systems, the creation of deepfake content, limited access to data and compute power, regulation of open-source AI, and ensuring the copyright protection of content used to build AI tools. The report recommended that these challenges be discussed at the upcoming global AI safety summit at Bletchley Park to be attended by international governments, leading AI firms, and researchers.

The UK government’s current white paper on AI emphasizes five guiding principles for managing the technology, including safety, transparency, fairness, accountability, and the promotion of competition. While the paper does not propose new legislation, it does mention the introduction of a “statutory duty” for regulators to follow these principles. The committee report argued that this commitment alone highlights the need for an AI bill to ensure the UK remains a leader in AI regulation and to prevent other jurisdictions from shaping the global framework.

The report further suggested that the AI safety summit should include as many countries as possible, including China, to foster a diverse range of voices. However, it acknowledged the need for a more trusted forum to address security aspects related to AI. The UK government responded by stating that the forthcoming AI summit will address the risks and harms associated with AI and emphasized its commitment to a proportionate and adaptable approach to regulation.

Sources: 1. Original article

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