British Columbia’s Tumbler Ridge Chamber of Commerce and Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce are calling on Ottawa and the provincial government to ban the use of AI tools and social media by children under 16.
Jerilyn Kirk, executive director of the Tumbler Ridge Chamber, said last month’s shootings in the community highlight how everyone is “vulnerable to the effects of online harm.”
She said a growing body of research shows that giving children unregulated access to powerful digital applications leads to “social instability, mental health pressures and public safety risks”.
Jesse Van Loetzeler, who shot and killed eight people on February 10th before committing suicide, was banned from OpenAI in June last year for violating policies regarding the use of the chatbot ChatGPT.
However, the company only reported her to police after her name was made public after the shooting.
Neil Godbout, executive director of the Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce, said healthy communities are “the foundation of economic stability and growth.”
In a statement, both chambers announced that a joint resolution on the proposed ban will now be considered by the BC Chamber of Commerce.
If adopted, it will become part of a policy that the provincial legislature will submit to the B.C. government for consideration.
The business groups announced the joint resolution ahead of Thursday’s virtual meeting with B.C. Premier David Eby, Tumbler Ridge Mayor Darryl Krakowka and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
The Canadian Press obtained a statement and resolution after the meeting, in which Eby said Altman had agreed to publicly apologize for his company’s actions.
Eby also said OpenAI will work with the state to develop federal regulatory standards for artificial intelligence and recommendations for reporting problematic user interactions.
