There has been a lot going on in the world of Artificial Intelligence (AI) – the tech “hot topic”. We thought we would do a round-up of the most recent and pertinent developments in this space:

1. The European Commission has released new template standard AI procurement clauses (on 5 October 2023). These standard contractual clauses have been drafted for public organisations wishing to procure an AI System developed by an external supplier. Public organisations have been invited to pilot the clauses and give the AI community feedback on their use. These clauses have been developed with the aim of establishing responsibilities for trustworthy, transparent, and accountable development of AI technologies between a supplier and a public organisation. Please see a link to the EU Commission website article and this resource here.
    
2. G7 leaders' have agreed on Guiding Principles and a Code of Conduct on Artificial Intelligence (30 October 2023). These principles and the voluntary Code of Conduct will complement, at international level, the legally binding rules that the EU co-legislators are currently finalising under the EU AI Act. The 11 Guiding Principles adopted by the G7 provide guidance for organisations developing, deploying and using advanced AI systems, such as foundation models and generative AI, to promote safety and trustworthiness of the technology. Please see a link to the EU Commission website article here.
    
3. US AI-focused Executive Order announced by President Joe Biden for the “Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence” (on 30 October 2023). This Executive Order represents the US’ contribution to the subject of accountability and how AI is developed and deployed across organisations. Please see a link to the White House update here.
    
4. Global AI Safety Summit 2023 held in England, at Bletchley Park (between 1-2 November 2023). The UK Prime Minister launched the world’s first AI Safety Institute in the UK, tasked with testing the safety of emerging types of AI. More than 25 countries and the EU signed an international declaration that recognised the need to address risks represented by AI development. France will host the next AI Safety Summit in 2024. Please see a link to the UK government website article here.
    
5. UK GDPR toolkit launched by the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office for organisations considering the use of data analytics, to help businesses recognise some of the central risks to the rights and freedoms of individuals created by the use of data analytics. The toolkit provides a short report which suggests practical actions businesses can take and provides links to additional guidance to help businesses improve data protection compliance. Please see a link to this resource here.
    
6. French data protection regulator (CNIL) Q&A. CNIL unveiled their “first answers for innovative and privacy-friendly AI” (on 16 October 2023) - a set of guidelines for the use of AI that respects personal data regulation. This guidance will be followed by other guidance, which will complement on other issues in the AI sector. Please see a link to the CNIL website article here.
    
7. EU AI Act – the EU is looking at introducing specific legislation aimed at regulating AI – this will categorise AI into high risk and banned unacceptable risk and is aimed at both users and creators of AI systems.