Biden issues executive order to ensure responsible AI development

President Biden has issued an executive order aimed at positioning the US at the forefront of AI while ensuring the technology's safe and responsible use.

The order establishes stringent standards for AI safety and security, safeguards Americans' privacy, promotes equity and civil rights, protects consumers and workers, fosters innovation and competition, and enhances American leadership on the global stage.

Key actions outlined in the order:

New standards for AI...

30 October 2023 | Artificial Intelligence

GitLab: Developers view AI as ‘essential’ despite concerns

A survey by GitLab has shed light on the views of developers on the landscape of AI in software development.

The report, titled ‘The State of AI in Software Development,’ presents insights from over 1,000 global senior technology executives, developers, and security and operations professionals.

The report reveals a complex relationship between enthusiasm for AI adoption and concerns about data privacy, intellectual property, and security.

“Enterprises...

6 September 2023 | Applications

Error-prone facial recognition leads to another wrongful arrest

The Detroit Police Department (DPD) is once again under scrutiny as a new lawsuit emerges, revealing that another innocent person has been wrongly arrested due to a flawed facial recognition match.

Porcha Woodruff, an African American woman who was eight months pregnant at the time, is the sixth individual to come forward and report being falsely accused of a crime because of the controversial technology utilised by law enforcement.

Woodruff was accused of robbery and...

7 August 2023 | Applications

European Parliament adopts AI Act position

The European Parliament has taken a significant step towards the regulation of artificial intelligence by voting to adopt its position for the upcoming AI Act with an overwhelming majority. 

The act aims to regulate AI based on its potential to cause harm and follows a risk-based approach, prohibiting applications that pose an unacceptable risk while imposing strict regulations for high-risk use cases.

The timing of AI regulation has been a subject of debate, but...

14 June 2023 | Artificial Intelligence

EU committees green-light the AI Act

The Internal Market Committee and the Civil Liberties Committee of the European Parliament have endorsed new transparency and risk-management rules for artificial intelligence systems known as the AI Act.

This marks a major step in the development of AI regulation in Europe, as these are the first-ever rules for AI. The rules aim to ensure that AI systems are safe, transparent, traceable, and non-discriminatory.

After the vote, co-rapporteur Brando Benifei (S&D,...

11 May 2023 | Artificial Intelligence

FTC Chairwoman: There is no ‘AI exemption’ to existing laws

FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan has warned that the US government will not hesitate to clamp down on harmful business practices involving AI.

Speaking at a virtual press event, Khan was joined by top officials from US consumer protection and civil rights agencies.

Together, the officials emphasised that regulators are committed to tracking and stopping any illegal behaviour associated with biased or deceptive AI tools.

Khan warned that, in addition to the...

26 April 2023 | Applications

​​Italy will lift ChatGPT ban if OpenAI fixes privacy issues

Italy’s data protection authority has said that it’s willing to lift its ChatGPT ban if OpenAI meets specific conditions.

The Guarantor for the Protection of Personal Data (GPDP) announced last month that it was blocking access to OpenAI's ChatGPT. The move was part of an ongoing investigation into whether the chatbot violated Italy's data privacy laws and the EU's infamous General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The GPDP was concerned that ChatGPT could recall...

13 April 2023 | Applications

Italy’s facial recognition ban exempts law enforcement

Italy has banned the use of facial recognition, except for law enforcement purposes.

On Monday, the country’s Data Protection Authority (Garante per la protezione dei dati personali) issued official stays to two municipalities – the southern Italian city of Lecce and the Tuscan city of Arezzo – over their experiments with biometrics technologies.

The agency banned facial recognition systems using biometric data until a specific law governing its use is...

15 November 2022 | Applications

UK fines Clearview AI £7.5M for scraping citizens’ data

Clearview AI has been fined £7.5 million by the UK’s privacy watchdog for scraping the online data of citizens without their explicit consent.

The controversial facial recognition provider has scraped billions of images of people across the web for its system. Understandably, it caught the attention of regulators and rights groups from around the world.

In November 2021, the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) imposed a potential fine of just over £17...

23 May 2022 | Applications

Zoom receives backlash for emotion-detecting AI

Zoom has caused a stir following reports that it’s developing an AI system for detecting emotions.

The system, first reported by Protocol, claims to scan users’ faces and their speech to determine their emotions.

Zoom detailed the system more in a blog post last month. The company says ‘Zoom IQ’ will be particularly useful for helping salespeople improve their pitches based on the emotions of call participants.

Naturally, the system is seen as rather...

19 May 2022 | Applications