An annotated image of the IBM Diversity in Faces dataset for facial recognition systems.
IBM
LONDON – The use of artificial intelligence software for mass surveillance and classification of social behavior could soon be banned in Europe, according to the bill that has been shared online.
The 81-page document, which was first reported by Politico, says that “indiscriminate surveillance of individuals should be prohibited when applied in a general way to all people without differentiation.”
He adds that surveillance methods could include tracking and tracing people in digital and physical environments.
With regard to the social credit score, which is already used in China, the bill says that “artificial intelligence systems used for general purpose social scoring” should be banned.
According to the document, certain uses of “high-risk” AI may be banned altogether, while others may not be able to enter the block if they violate certain rules.
A European Commission spokesman told CNBC: “The Commission will adopt the regulatory framework on AI on Wednesday 21 April 2021. Therefore, any text you may see before is not, by definition, ‘legitimate’: no comment on leaks “.
Act of balance
AI systems considered high risk should be inspected for deployment and system creators may need to demonstrate that it has been formed into unbiased datasets in a traceable manner and under human supervision.
According to reports, companies developing AI in and outside the EU could receive a fine of € 20 million ($ 24 million) or 4% of global revenue if they breach laws that have not yet been introduced.
The proposals will be formally announced next week by the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, and will be subject to change until then. You will need to vote on them before submitting them.
The European Commission is trying to find the right balance between supporting innovation and ensuring that AI benefits its more than 500 million inhabitants. If the proposals are adopted, Europe could be differentiated from the United States and China, which have not yet introduced any serious regulation on AI.
Omer Tene, vice-president of the International Association of Privacy Professionals, said via Twitter that the legislation “represents Brussels’ typical approach to new technologies and innovation. When in doubt, regulate.”
Samim Winiger, an AI researcher in Berlin, Germany, told CNBC that the EU is “far behind” China and the United States in the AI race.
“I find it quite difficult to understand how the introduction of highly complex and highly complex AI regulations in a niche market will have a real impact on the development of‘ AI ’globally,” he said.