Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1487971
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 11 DECEMBER 2022 15 OPINION Promoting AI while safeguarding users Alex Agius Saliba Alex Agius Saliba is a Labour MEP (S&D) ARTIFICIAL intelligence (AI) technologies are increasing- ly prevalent in our lives—from digital voice assistants to per- sonalised advertising and enter- tainment or advanced medical diagnostics. I believe the EU has positioned itself as the most forward-look- ing, advanced, and ambitious hub for AI technologies in the globe, as it has shown recently as it embarked on becoming the first major regulator anywhere in the world, to have a comprehensive and robust AI regulation that leg- islates on the AI systems which we already find all around us. The legislative proposal however is not an isolated initiative, since the EU Commission had already published its AI package in 2021, which included its plan to foster a European approach to AI, a re- view to the Coordinated Plan on AI (initially published in 2018) and the regulation proposal which I've already mentioned. This, natural- ly, is in conjunction with the mas- sive financial investment made by EU institutions in developing AI across the continent. With regards to investment, if we want to take a look at the past, results show that prior to COVID-19 (in 2019), the EU invested between €7.9 and €9 billion in AI. Was this enough? Definitely not, and the European Investment Bank was very clear that there was a shortfall of up to €10 billion in investments that was holding Europe back when compared to other markets like the USA and China. Going forward however, through the Horizon Europe and Digital Europe programmes, the Commission plans to in- vest almost €1 billion per year in AI. Apart from its direct in- vestments, it will help the pri- vate sector as well as individual member states mobilise addi- tional funds to reach an annual investment volume of €20 billion over the course of what we're calling the digital decade. Benefits and misuse e EU needs a progressive, enforceable legal framework on AI focusing on promoting trust- worthy, human-centric AI sys- tems that uphold fundamental rights and protect people, espe- cially those most at risk. In this context, the AI Act proposed by the European Commission and discussed during the S&D AI ac- tion day clearly and once again gives the EU the role of global standard-setter and provides the means to define the kind of AI we want in Europe. Once adopt- ed, the new rules will regulate AI systems and identify the risk cat- egories of AI applications, espe- cially unacceptable or high-risk applications. Unacceptable risks are those applications of AI which resem- ble the government-run social scoring processes currently hap- pening in the People's Republic of China. e EU plans to ban these practices and as a political group, the S&D wholeheartedly agrees, however we want to take this a step further. e current EU proposal only seeks to ban social scoring if is done by the Government, the S&D Group is asking the EU Commission to ban the use of social scoring by private entities as well in its up- dated proposal. We all know that global tech giants wield as much power as some Governments, and it would only be fair to wid- en the scope of the regulations to make sure they are covered in this respect. High-risk applications such as scanning tools that rank appli- cations will be subject to spe- cific legal requirements whilst other applications not explicitly banned or listed as high-risk are largely left out of the proposed regulations. As a group, we are also propos- ing further improvements to the Commission proposal to ensure that people are able to question and understand new technol- ogies, as well as they have the right to seek redress when their rights have been harmed and they have been affected by neg- ative uses of AI. Artificial Intelligence Action Day e S&D Group's Artificial Intelligence Action Day, which took place on the 1st of Decem- ber was organised by the digital formation, which I am charing and responsible for as the S&D Vice-President for digital policy. In the last few years, the S&D group has been making signif- icant policy changes on digital files at the European level, such as DSA, DMA, and the Univer- sal chargers. e new AI propos- al is another example where the S&D leads the negotiations and makes a real difference in peo- ple's lives. e EU's plans to po- sition itself as a global leader in this field are quite ambitious and require an extensive dialogue with all stakeholders at an EU level to ensure that the sector's regulation is effective and fair. For us as a group, it is also es- sential to involve people, pro- fessionals, academics, and stu- dents at a local level, and that is why we decided to go back to our countries and create a cross-country stakeholder con- sultation and discussion. e AI action day connected stakehold- ers from four countries - Malta, Italy, Spain, and Denmark - in one big event. We listened to each other and gathered feedback from the peo- ple on the ground, who have been the pioneers in the AI sphere for many years, to make sure we are in tune with what they expect from policymakers and that our attempts to amelio- rate Commission proposals are still up to date in this fast-mov- ing environment. At a national level, we need to talk about AI in realistic terms that treat it as the contemporary and core compo- nent in our daily lives, which it already is. e digital event was an ex- cellent opportunity for Maltese AI leaders to engage with their foreign counterparts and share practical experiences that in- spire politicians to make the right choices. e discussions in Malta focused, in particular, on remedies and redress rights to ensure that people can question and understand new technolo- gies and can be protected when their rights have been harmed. Malta and AI I think the Maltese Govern- ment has already made signifi- cant strides in this field, with a strategic document outlining Malta's vision for artificial intel- ligence up to 2030 published in October of 2019. ese docu- ments are a great starting point, but naturally they need to be fol- lowed-up with real investment and the creation of an environ- ment which fosters innovation. I am optimistic in this sense, since the TechMalta database already shows dozens of start- ups and established companies operating in this field and we are integrating AI processes in the public sector for the benefit of end-users. e private sector is also responding well to the emergence of AI and I believe Malta has what it takes to be- come a leader in this innovative field. e EU needs to provide the right tools to Member States and incentivise the inclusion of Artificial Intelligence and con- nected subjects in the national curricula of educational institu- tions for both the young and old. To recap, I believe that formal and informal education must be coupled with targeted media campaigns which ensure that a clear and fair picture of the EU's plans in this sector reaches all European households, irrespec- tive of educational and social background. e AI revolution we are cur- rently experiencing may provoke fear and confusion, especially in the elderly cohorts of our soci- ety. e EU must counter this with the diffusion of knowledge and meaningful dialogue at all levels. The near future I think we won't be able to distinguish between decisions made by AI systems and by our fellow humans by the year 2032. I am hopeful that this level of sophistication, accuracy and empathy in AI decision-making helps us a human race develop our potential by unlocking time and effort which was previous- ly dedicated on mundane and repetitive tasks, and redirect- ing this time and effort to more meaningful and rewarding activ- ities that bring us even closer as a community.