After France, it is now the turn of the European Commission to unveil its strategy for boosting artificial intelligence (AI). On Wednesday 25 April, it published a communication identifying the main European level areas of construction, as well as a working paper on liability for emerging digital technologies.
The communication was relatively well received by stakeholders (the technology sector, ITI, trade unions, ETUC, chartered accountants, the private sector, Business Europe, ACCA) and aims to increase public and private investment in AI, prepare the EU for socio-economic changes and introduce an appropriate ethical and legal framework.
Objective: €20 billion by 2020
First of all, with regard to investment, the Commission acknowledges that the EU really is lagging behind China and the US. It is therefore committed to investing €1.5 billion by 2020 as part of the Horizon 2020 programme and is hoping that public and private investment in research and innovation will reach a total of €20 billion in two years time. It is also committed to mobilising European funds for strategic investments as a means of attracting private investment to the tune of €500 million by 2020.
With regard to socio-economic changes, the Commission is planning to publish an experts’ report on the impact of AI and set up (re) information systems for professional profiles that will be affected by AI.
Responsibility and safety: questions still pending
In relation to the most sensitive issues, the Commission has announced the publication of ethical guidelines by the end of 2018. These will be drafted by the future (multi-party) alliance for artificial intelligence and will tackle questions such as the future of work, fairness, safety, social inclusion, algorithmic transparency and, more broadly, the impact on fundamental rights, particularly private life, dignity, consumer protection and non-discrimination.
In the responsibility arena, the Commission is committed to publishing interpretive guidelines on the directive relating to product liability (85/374), in an effort to guarantee legal clarity when products are defective. These guidelines will be based on the working paper published in the same day on liability relating to new digital technologies and guardianship responsibility, prevented damages, specific kinds of damages, the burden of proof, etc.
In reply to questions from journalists, the Commissioner for Industry, Elzbieta Bienkowska, highlighted the fact that robots will never be treated as humans. The Commissioner for the Digital Economy, Mariya Gabriel, retorted that, “Our approach is based on man at the commands”. These reassurances, however, did not reassure the consumer lobbying organisation, BEUC, which would have liked more concrete action on the issues of liability and safety.
It should be pointed out as well that over the next few weeks, the Commission will be publishing a communication on the future of connected and automated mobility in Europe and a communication on the future research and innovation goals for Europe. The communication can be seen at the following link: https://bit.ly/2HM2hgh . (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)