The risks connected with artificial intelligence (AI) are becoming more apparent in a rapidly evolving technological context. Chancellor Rishi Sunak is under increasing pressure as academics and policymakers call for immediate regulation to address these concerns.
UK MPs have warned that any government regulation should focus on the potential damage AI poses to human life.
Concerns over public safety and national security were among a dozen issues raised by members of the Science, Innovation, and Technology Committee as issues that ministers must solve before the UK hosts a world-first conference at Bletchley Park.
Jump To
MPs Sound Alarm On AI: A Deep Dive Into 12 Must-Address Issues
Credit: AP
At the event, held in November at Britain’s Second World War codebreaking base, Rishi Sunak and other leaders will examine the opportunities and risks posed by AI.
Alan Turing and others used Colossus computers to decipher data transmitted between Nazis at the location, which was critical to the development of the technology.
The committee’s chair, Conservative MP Greg Clark, said he “strongly welcomes” the meeting but warned that the government may need to act with “greater urgency” to ensure prospective legislation doesn’t soon become outdated as nations like the US, China, and the EU explore their own AI guidelines.
The Committee Listed 12 Challenges
1. Existential peril: If, as some experts have warned, AI poses a significant threat to human life, then regulation must include safeguards for national security.
2. Bias: AI has the potential to bring new or perpetuate current prejudices in society.
3. Confidentiality: sensitive information about individuals or corporations could be utilised to train AI models.
4. Misrepresentation: Language models such as ChatGPT may generate content that misrepresents someone’s actions, personal views, and character.
5. Data: the massive amount of information required to train the most powerful AI
6. Processing power: Developing the most powerful AI necessitates massive processing power.
7. Transparency: AI models frequently need to explain why they create a specific outcome or where the data comes from.
8. Copyright: Generative models, whether text, images, music, or video, often use existing content, which must be protected so that the creative industries are not harmed.
9. Liability: If AI tools are exploited to cause harm, policy must determine who is responsible, whether the developers or the providers.
10. Employment: Politicians must foresee the inevitable impact of AI adoption on existing jobs.
11. Openness and Innovation: The computer code underlying AI models might be publicly available to enable more reliable regulation and promote openness and innovation.
12. International coordination: any rule must be developed internationally, and the November summit must include “as broad a range of countries as possible.”
Credit: Canva
The NHS Could Benefit From AI In An Exciting Way
Clark also mentioned health care as one of AI’s “most exciting” areas. It is already used in the NHS to analyse X-rays and scans, and academics are investigating how it could be used to forecast dangerous long-term illnesses such as diabetes.
He stated that AI might assist in making treatment “increasingly personalised, but highlighted the report’s concerns about potential biases being integrated into any AI model’s training data.
“If you’re conducting medical research on a specific sample or ethnic minority, the data on which AI is trained may result in inaccurate recommendations,” he noted.
Credit: Getty Images
An Approach That Is ‘Proportionate’ Is Desired By The Government
The committee stated that it would “in due course” issue a comprehensive set of recommendations for the government. It wants any proposed AI law to be presented to MPs during the next parliament, which convenes in September after the summer holiday.
A spokeswoman stated that the government is dedicated to a “proportionate and adaptable approach to regulation,” pointing to a £100 million fund for the safe development of AI models in the UK.
“AI has enormous potential to change every aspect of our lives,” they added, “and we owe it to our children and grandchildren to harness that potential safely and responsibly.”
What do you think about it? Do let us know in the comments.
For more trending stories, follow us on Telegram.