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What can we expect with the advent of artificial intelligence in our lives – structural change or just another wave of technological innovation?

“It is already clear that the question of whether artificial intelligence will be regulated by legislation. The question now is when and how.”

Artificial intelligence – regulation and the future, discussion in the Council of Ministers on May 11, 2023

The development of technologies based on artificial intelligence (AI) has reached a stage where they have already made a tangible impact on everyday life, and tech giants are in an open race. The new technology undoubtedly makes our lives easier, shows us possibilities that are clearly beyond our natural intelligence. It even makes us dream that we will soon leave behind many trivial tasks: writing standard texts, searching for information, and even driving.

BUT, there are some aspects that are beginning to cause concern: how secure are our rights and are we vulnerable?

Here are some examples:

AI is behind the algorithms that determine what we watch on video streaming platforms, which can have a direct effect on our right to receive and disseminate information.

AI can be used in recruitment to filter job applications – i.e. directly affecting our social and economic rights and protection against discrimination. This example is particularly illustrative of the risk that AI could lead to a result that is diametrically opposed to the goal—instead of achieving impartiality, harmful stereotypes are reinforced. Let’s say that AI processes applications for engineers based on data on the best engineers in the world over the past 100 years. Obviously, over the last 100 years, for a variety of social reasons unrelated to objective qualification criteria, the best engineers have been men, and so the algorithm will reproduce this stereotype and prioritize male candidates.

There is evidence that AI for crime prediction is already being used in some European countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, and Italy. These systems, broadly speaking, profile people and predict their future behavior by assessing the “risk” of criminal behavior. As a result of such an assessment, a person may be monitored and observed, stopped for checks, and investigated without objective evidence of a crime. This can lead to other consequences, such as the suspension of social benefits. Such systems are extremely vulnerable to the reinforcement of discriminatory stereotypes related to race, socioeconomic status, and nationality. This leads to the violation of a number of fundamental rights, such as the right to a fair trial, the presumption of innocence, the right to private and family life, and the protection of personal data. This example also shows us something else: when we do not understand AI-based systems, have not ensured their transparency and risk assessment, we tend to over-rely on them. After all, how can we question something that we assume has been developed by professionals, works with huge amounts of data, or, simply put, we consider “smarter” than us? In this way, for example, a police officer will be inclined to trust the system and take action, even though the formal decision to take action will depend on him.

The only way to ensure protection from the risks associated with AI technologies for each and every one of us is to create regulation based on human rights standards. And while such a debate has been ongoing in Brussels since 2019 in connection with the adoption of the AI Regulation, Bulgaria is once again on the verge of being unprepared for future regulation. The Bulgarian government has already committed to launching an effective public dialogue to develop common standards for the use of artificial intelligence in the digitalization process in order to ensure equal access and respect for human rights through Measure 4 of the Fourth National Action Plan under the”Partnership for Open Government.” Although the Plan was adopted in 2022, this measure has not yet been implemented in practice. This was also pointed out by BCNL legal expert Zahari Yankov during the discussion “Artificial Intelligence – Regulation and Future” organized by the Council of Ministers..

We believe that with the development of AI and its application in various spheres of human life, we should be optimistic about the progress of human knowledge, which can use technology to solve some social problems and level out inequalities that we cannot eradicate. But for this to happen, we must be sure that:

  • This is a structural change because digital technologies not only facilitate communication but also create a whole new environment in which we exercise our rights and access public services. We must therefore ensure that the necessary safeguards are in place in this environment – how transparent and clear the technological decision-making process is, how the information and data involved are collected, privacy and data protection, as well as ensuring rapid and effective redress for the use of a particular technology and the possibility of seeking compensation in the event of harm;
  • Human rights are at the heart of future legal regulation of artificial intelligence, as this is the best mechanism for protecting every individual regardless of their educational, social or public status.
  • We are talking about digital democracy, because every new topic that raises ethical and value-based dilemmas requires a conversation between all stakeholders. For such a public dialogue to be meaningful, it must be supported by the widest possible range of people who will be affected by the emerging technology, regardless of whether they understand how it is actually created and works.

The conversation we had with Venelin Stoychev, moderator, Peter Tornev, director of the Technology Center at Accenture; Irina Alexieva, Ministry of Electronic Governance; Zahari Yankov, BCNL, and Dr. Nikola Konstantinov, INSAIT, was extremely informative and certainly signaled that such interdisciplinary formats should continue. You can watch the entire discussion Artificial Intelligence – Regulation and Future, in connection with the implementation of Measure 4 of the Fourth National Action Plan under the Open Government Partnership initiative.Here.