Expert Panel Report On AI Rules To Open For Public Consultation Soon

Recommendations by an expert committee on devising a framework on artificial intelligence have been submitted to the government, and will be out for public consultation soon, according to Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India.

The committee was constituted by the Ministry of Electronics and IT and was chaired by Professor Sood.

The report will be out very soon and one can expect a light-weight but effective set of rules to govern AI in the country, Sood said while speaking at the sidelines of a Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry event on Thursday,

"AI can be disruptive. Not always, but AI does generate engaging texts, photo-realistic images and deepfakes which are detrimental for a democratic system. We're looking at optimum balance between regulation and innovation," Sood said.

Various governments around the world are trying to govern AI in different ways, he said. "European models have come up with regulations that could make startups and innovators confused. Others have gone for self regulation. There are various models and for India we need to see what works best," he added.

He emphasised on a "techno-legal approach" for AI, and pointed to a set of standardised risk assessment protocols from the industry, as a principle for self discipline.

It is yet to be seen whether a fully self-regulatory approach will be taken up, something which has been implemented in the fintech industry by the government.

Regulations should be subject to human oversight and not completely system-driven, Sood said.

In January this year, Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of the Prime Minister's economic advisory council had said that India should have a complex adaptive system or CAS-based approach to regulating AI. In a research paper, Sanyal wrote that a specialised AI regulatory body is needed, which will act as "dynamic task force with a broad mandate."