Britain’s competition regulator said on Thursday it would launch an investigation into the impact of artificial intelligence on consumers, businesses and the economy and whether new controls are needed on technologies such as OpenAI chatgpt.
while the research is going on oh Going on for years, the sudden popularity of generative AI applications such as chatgpt And Midjourney shines a light on a technology that could change the way businesses and society operate.
Governments around the world are now trying to find a balance that allows them to assess and rein in some of the potentially negative consequences of AI without stifling innovation.
Britain in March opted to split regulatory responsibility for AI between bodies that oversee human rights, health and safety and competition, rather than creating a new body dedicated to the technology.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which grabbed headlines last week, blocked its $69 billion (roughly Rs. 5,64,100 crores) acquisition of Microsoft. activism blizzardsaid it would begin the work by trying to understand how foundational models using large amounts of unlabeled data were developing.
CMA CEO Sarah Cardell said AI has burst into the public consciousness and is developing rapidly.
“It is vital that the potential benefits of this transformative technology are readily available to UK businesses and consumers, while people are protected from issues such as false or misleading information,” she said.
The review in Britain echoes investigations around the world, from Beijing to Brussels and Washington.
Alex Haffner, a lawyer at law firm Flaggate, said the CMA would investigate under its general powers, and thus is likely to better understand AI, rather than take any enforcement action against individual companies.
“That said, viewed against the backdrop in which the CMA is being given greater powers to investigate and apprehend Big Tech, this announcement only serves to reinforce the impression that the CMA is Determined to use the powers comprehensively,” he said.
The United States is looking at potential rules to regulate technology and digital ministers from the Group of Seven major economies agreed last month to adopt “risk-based” regulation on AI that preserves an open environment for the development of such technologies. Will do
Italy, a G7 member, took ChatGPT offline last month to investigate a possible breach of personal data rules. While Italy later lifted the ban, the move prompted fellow European privacy regulators to launch investigations.
Linklaters’ lawyer Verity Egerton-Doyle said the review would give the UK competition regulator an opportunity to join the debate.
“The EU Digital Markets Act which came into full force this week does not cover generative AI and CMA undoubtedly sees this as an opportunity to lead the global debate on these issues – with the US FTC who is already looking at the area,” he said.
© Thomson Reuters 2023