Date: July 1, 2023
Several industry leaders and experts are expressing concerns over the potential negative impact of the draft European Union (EU) rules on artificial intelligence (AI) on Europe’s competitiveness. The proposed regulations, aimed at governing the use of AI technologies, have raised apprehensions among businesses and leaders who believe they could stifle innovation and hinder economic growth. According to an open letter signed by more than 160 executives from companies ranging from Renault to Meta, the planned EU Artificial Intelligence law would endanger Europe’s competitiveness and scientific sovereignty.
The Act proposes strict rules and requirements for AI systems in various sectors, including healthcare, transportation, and finance. It seeks to address potential risks associated with AI, such as privacy breaches, biased decision-making, and lack of transparency. Whereas Systems like ChatGPT would be required to reveal AI-generated content, assist in differentiating so-called deep-fake photos from real ones, and provide controls against illicit content.
However, executives from tech companies and industry associations argue that the proposed rules could hinder Europe’s ability to compete globally in the AI sector. Several open letters have been published since ChatGPT gained popularity calling for AI regulation and increasing the “risk of extinction from AI.”
According to Cedric O, a former digital minister of France and one of the three organisers of the letter, “We are primarily aiming at the European Parliament version because they decided to move from a risk-based approach to a technology-based approach, which was not in the initial text.”
The open letter was organised by him along with Jeannette zu Fürstenberg, founding partner of La Famiglia VC, and René Obermann, chairman of Airbus.The letter issued a warning that the new EU regulations would excessively regulate technology like generative AI and subject enterprises creating such systems to exorbitant compliance costs and disproportionate liability risks.
After threatening to take ChatGPT out of Europe in May if it became too difficult to comply with upcoming AI rules, OpenAI’s Altman later changed his mind and claimed the business has no intentions to leave.
Dragos Tudorache, who co-led the formulation of the EU recommendations, stated, “I am convinced they have not carefully read the text but have instead reacted on the stimulus of a few who have an interest in this topic.”
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