Taipei, July 16 (CNA) The cabinet-level National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) on Monday released a draft artificial intelligence (AI) bill covering the use and reliability of AI and the mitigation of associated risks.
The bill drafted by the NSTC calls for the government to establish a framework for clarifying responsibility for AI applications, consisting of labeling, disclosure, and accountability mechanisms, to strengthen the trust of AI applications.
However, according to the proposal, the norms on liability for AI applications would not apply to activities in the development and research phase of AI technologies prior to the release of applications supporting technological innovation.
The Act also provides for the establishment of additional regulations governing the use of AI applications, AI accountability, and how AI can be used in the insurance industry.
The largely vague AI Basic Law is Taiwan's initial attempt to create a legal framework for regulating AI applications.
The bill, which consists of 18 articles, will be open to public comment for 60 days until September 13, after which it will be reviewed again by the NSTC and submitted to the Cabinet for approval by the end of October.
If approved by Cabinet, the law will be sent to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation and passage.
The proposal states that risk mitigation is a broad topic and that clear rules are needed to mitigate risks when using AI applications, such as the AI Risk Management Framework developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
The draft says such a framework should mandate AI security standards and verification mechanisms, along with an accountability framework.
It also stipulates that the Personal Data Protection Authority will assist regulators in avoiding the unnecessary collection, processing or use of personal data during the AI research, development and application process.
Additionally, the proposal mandates governments to regulate the use of AI by coming up with tools and methods to prevent the misuse of AI systems that could harm society or mislead users.
It states that measures should be taken to prevent AI from causing damage to people's lives, bodies, freedoms, property, social order or the environment, or violating existing laws and regulations by presenting conflicts of interest, discrimination, bias, false advertising, misleading or false information.
To protect the rights and interests of workers, the draft bill says the government should provide job-hunting guidance to people who have lost their jobs due to the use of AI.
It is estimated that AI could cause around 30% of Taiwan's workforce to lose their jobs.
