Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(TRAI) recently issued a Press Release and recommendations to regulate responsible Artificial Intelligence (AI) use across sectors. The Recommendations paper defined AI as “a set of widely different technologies aimed at approximating some aspect of human cognition and learning to mimic the problem-solving and decision-making capabilities of the human mind leveraging on Machine Learning (ML) and modern data techniques”.
Further, while the paper noted that India does not have an overarching regulatory framework for the use of AI systems, it did recognise certain sector specific developments such as certain SEBI Circular of January 2019 to Stockbrokers, Depository Participants, Recognized Stock Exchanges and Depositories and in May 2019 to all Mutual Funds / Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on reporting requirements for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) applications and systems offered and used.
Few of the recommendations by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(TRAI) are discussed below:-
1. The Authority recommended the adoption of a regulatory framework which is applicable across various sectors. The broad tenets of the regulatory framework include an independent statutory body (Artificial Intelligence and Data Authority of India), Multi Stakeholder Body and categorisation of various AI uses based on their risk profile and principles of Responsible AI.
2. Considering the far-reaching impact of AI, a recommendation has also been made to the Indian Government to collaborate with international agencies and governments of other countries for forming a global agency that will act as the primary international body for development, standardisation, and responsible use of AI.
3. The Authority recommends that Department of Telecommunications ( DOT ) , through Inter- Ministerial Working Group (IMWG) formed for implementation and penetration of 5G, should coordinate with other sectoral Ministries / Departments to encourage and develop indigenous AI use cases for various sectors by funding from the respective Ministry / Departmental Budgets.
4. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(TRAI) also recommends, one Centre of Excellence for Artificial Intelligence (CoE-AI) should be established in each State/UT, for facilitating entities to develop and demonstrate technological capabilities. It has also made a recommendation to develop appropriate courses on Ethical Use of AI as well as on Basic Concepts of AI for Government officers, employees and students of technical institutes.
A copy of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(TRAI) recommendations are enclosed below.
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