Cloning laws could be a model for AI boundaries, Champagne says
Global News
Faced with the rapid rise of AI, Canada's approach to cloning could offer a clue on how to regulate the new tech, the innovation minister suggests.
Faced with the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI), Canada’s approach to cloning could offer a clue on how to regulate the new tech, the innovation minister suggests.
Francois-Philippe Champagne said during a panel talk on fostering tech innovation in Canada at the Collision conference in Toronto on Wednesday that the action taken on cloning is a good model for the government’s hopes in regulating AI.
“Remember when it was the time of cloning? We have a precedent where humanity said, ‘We’re going to put boundaries around that. We’re not going to clone humans. We’re going to make sure the science and technology respect a number of principles,'” he said.
“That’s what we need to do with AI. We need to give that trust to people so we have responsible development of AI.”
In 2004, Canada made it illegal to knowingly create a human clone regardless of purpose with the Assisted Human Reproduction Act.
Experts have warned of the dangers of AI, saying that it could pose more of a risk of extinction than nuclear weapons, with some calling for its development to be slowed until regulations are formed.
Champagne said Wednesday that Canada will likely be the first country in the world to have a digital charter with a chapter on responsible AI.
Bill C-27 proposes the creation of a new AI and data commissioner that could potentially monitor company compliance or order third-party audits, and would also ban “reckless and malicious” use of AI.