2017-11-30

Brazil takes part in mission to Europe on artificial intelligence and regulation of algorithms

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From 20 to 24 of November, in the cities of Berlin, Brussels and Paris, the Brazilian delegation, composed of specialists from the Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation and Communication (MCTIC), within the support of the Sector Dialogues Facility, was attended by representatives and institutions that lead projects in the area of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in these European countries. The aim of the mission was to share trends and perspectives in the formulation of public policies regarding the impacts and future of applications based on this technology.

 
Cristiane Rauen, advisor of the Department of Policies and Sectoral Programs in Information Technology and Communications (DETIC) of MCTIC, commented that, "Our main objective was to identify the state of the art of the discussion and map the major European initiatives and trends in public policies. We hope that the opportunity to establish such dialogues with European experts during the meetings allow us to exchange of experiences between ongoing Brazilian initiatives and related European actions”.

 
Moreover, this initiative, Cristiane added, “Is justified by the expectation that intelligent machines and other AI-based applications can generate significant economic impact and profoundly alter social dynamics as it is now known”. Due to face with the imminence of the potential effects of technology on today's socioeconomic configurations, a series of challenges are placed to regulators and policy makers worldwide.

 
Additionally, according to the MCTIC adviser, the expectation seeks to make comparisons between trends in Brazilian legislation and those of the countries visited during the mission, as well as those aimed at harmonizing legislation in the member countries of the European Union. Identifying legislative trends, practical case analyses on AI and regulatory algorithm measures, such as automobile-related initiatives in Germany, were included.

 
Considering that the subject is being studied within the European Commission and is also a subject of concern for Brazilian policy makers, the key result is the possibility of exchanging experiences between the EU and Brazil. To this end, a report is planned to identify and select European approaches on AI-based applications and regulatory algorithm measures that can be associated with the Brazilian scene, including the perspective of formulating an agenda for Brazil.

 
Furthermore, Cristiane also expressed that, “It is expected that the study will highlight in depth the main lines of action and trends of the EU in the regulation of the subject, in order to promote the discussion on the subject in our country”. In addition, the project will make it possible to identify and maintain focal points relevant to further contacts between the Brazilian government and the EU”.


The partners

 
The main partner institutions for this project are the European Commission and the Joint Research Centre / Digital Single Market. Connection with the European Commission was established with parliamentarians, technical advisors and experts on issues related to artificial intelligence and its applications. This allowed Brazilian experts to identify the regulatory design under discussion, the main themes, actions and governance structures in the topic. These aspects will serve as inspiration for the definition of proposals aimed at the standardization of AI-based applications in Brazil.

 
Gather information related to the European initiatives will support the Brazilian staff to stimulate an economy based on technologies and applications of AI which, therefore, can be adopted in Brazil. In particular, considering the singularities of its industrial park and equalizing aspects related to contact with the JRC / Digital Single Market was established with the Directorate General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology of the European Commission (DG CONNECT) more specifically with Digital Industry (Directorate A), responsible for themes related to the Digital Economy and applications of new technologies, including AI.

 
In addition, it is intended to set also contacts up with representatives of member countries, in order to identify the different nuances in the behaviour of the theme. The establishment of dialogue with government agencies, research centres and multilateral institutions associated to the topic was of particular relevant, especially among the meetings  held with representatives of the Ministry of Economy and Energy, the Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, in Germany,  the Commission Nationale de L'informatique et des libertés (CNIL) in France, European Economic and Social Committee, the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

 
To finalize, in the meetings, public policy initiatives related to Artificial Intelligence were discussed, particularly those actions aimed at the regulation of their applications, including algorithms used for automated decision making, autonomous vehicles, robots and other forms of AI still at an emerging stage. Always associating aspects such as protection of users' rights and ensuring the promotion of a trust environment for investments in this field.

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