In an unprecedented effort to encourage the responsible growth of artificial intelligence, the United States and Canada will today announce the launch of the first of its kind, North America-based partnership on AI research and development.
The initiative is designed to tackle the growing concerns among individuals and companies about bias, trustworthiness, unfair treatment, transparency and the social impact of AI systems.
The project, which was launched during a joint press conference earlier today, will see the cooperation of top academics, politicians, and business leaders from the two countries. Key focuses will be to create common ethical concepts, build sound testing and validation practices, and support public debate about the impact of AI.
“AI has enormous potential to drive and enable innovation, but we must ensure that development takes place in a manner that reflects our values and promotes, and not imperils, our priorities and our principles,” said a senior US official. “This joint initiative with Canada demonstrates our dedication to building innovative public sector partnerships that are ahead of the game when it comes to navigating the ethically complex landscape of AI.”
Responding to this, a representative from Canada stressed that cross-border collaboration is crucial in this area. ” Since the outset, Canada has been a strong advocate for responsible AI development, and we are pleased to partner with the United States on this important initiative. By combining our talent and resources, we can create a future where AI serves to improve everyone’s quality of life.”
The partnership will zero in on areas among:
Bias Detection and Mitigation: Create sophisticated approaches to detecting and removing biases from artificial intelligence algorithms for a multitude of applications with applications ranging from facial recognition to loan applications to criminal justice.
Transparency and Explain ability: Building AI systems that are more transparent in how they come to decisions, enabling discernment and accountability. Researchers will explore methods for describing how AI reaches its decisions.
Privacy and Data Governance: Exploring financial and ethical principles for collecting, storing, and utilizing data in the development of AI, while protecting individual privacy rights.
Social and Societal Impact Assessment: Exploring the larger societal effects of AI, such as those on employment, education, and social equity, to assist in setting policy and research agendas.
Global Standards: Working to drive international norms and standards with respect to ethical AI development and deployment.
The programme will allow for joint workshops, research projects and sharing of best practices between the two countries. Government agencies and collaborating research institutions in the US and Canada will share the funding.
This partnership is yet another example of the increasing global acknowledgment that ethics must be a priority in AI innovation. Together, the U.S. and Canada hope to establish an international example of principled AI development, build public trust and to make sure this powerful technology works for people in ways that are just and fair.
It aims to deliver concrete guidelines and tools for developers, companies and governments in both countries and beyond.
