Brussels (Belgium) (AFP) – The European Union said on Wednesday it would set up an “AI office” of technology experts, lawyers and economists to regulate artificial intelligence under a comprehensive new law.
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After lengthy and tough negotiations, the EU this year approved the world’s first comprehensive set of rules governing AI, specifically powerful systems like OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
First proposed in 2021, the body rushed the legislation into law after ChatGPT emerged in 2022 and wowed users with its ability to generate coherent text, including poetry, within seconds.
“The AI Office aims to enable the future development, deployment and use of AI in a way that promotes societal and economic benefits and innovation whilst mitigating risks,” the European Commission said.
The 140-member AI office would be established within the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm that also serves as the bloc’s powerful technology regulator.
“The office will foster a European AI ecosystem that is innovative, competitive and respects EU rules and values,” said Thierry Breton, the EU’s chief technology executive.
EU legislation known as the “AI Law” provides stricter rules for general-purpose AI systems like ChatGPT and adopts a risk-based approach to the technology.
For example, the higher the risk to Europeans’ rights and health, the greater the obligation of the system to protect individuals from harm.
“Working with developers and the scientific community, the agency will evaluate and test general AI to ensure that it serves us as humans and safeguards European values,” said European Commission Vice-President Margrethe Vestager.
Companies have until 2026 to comply with EU law, but the rules covering AI models like ChatGPT will only apply 12 months after the law is published.
The EU’s announcement came on the same day that EU auditors criticized the European Commission for not investing enough in AI to meet the EU’s ambitions.
“Stronger internal EU governance and greater, better targeted public and private investment will be paramount if the EU is to achieve its AI ambitions going forward,” the EU spending watchdog said.
But the European Commission defended the EU’s record, saying it invests more than 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) a year in AI research projects under various schemes.
© 2024 AFP
