To avoid being left behind by the rapid pace of global technological advancements in Artificial Intelligence, a lawmaker from Mindanao has called on his colleagues to prioritize and reinvigorate efforts to establish a “superbody” tasked with overseeing the development and implementation of this technology in the Philippines.
Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, overall chair of the House Quad Committee and chairman of the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs, said the Philippines needs a multi-agency regulatory body that would deal with AI revolution to augment the existing skills of Filipinos, increase the productivity of enterprises and enhance competitiveness of the economy.
“Halos lahat ng bansa sa mundo ay nagsasagawa na ng mga pambansang polisiya o batas sa patuloy na pag-unlad ng kaalaman tungkol sa AI. We Filipinos need to embrace AI because we cannot avoid it. Hindi dapat tayo magpahuli sa mga bagay na ito dahil malaki ang magiging impact nito sa ating lipunan, partikular na sa edukasyon, negosyo at ekonomiya,” he said.
Barbers said the Department of Science and Technology, the University of the Philippines, the Department of Education, among other government institutions, have crafted or currently crafting their respective policies on AI, but “we still have no national agency yet that would regulate it in a strategic and/or systematic manner.”
It is for the above-mentioned reasons, Barbers said, that he filed in March last year House Bill No. 7396 seeking the creation of a multi-agency to be known as the Artificial Intelligence Development Authority (AIDA which would undertake the tasks, duties and responsibilities in the development and implementation of a national AI strategy.
“The bill, titled, ‘An Act Promoting the Development and Regulation of AI in the Philippines’, bats for a comprehensive framework for the development and regulation of AI in the country,” he explained.
The proposed legislation defines AI as an umbrella term that encompasses various forms of technology, including machine learning, deep learning, neural works, and natural language processing.
“It outlines the principles of responsible AI usage and development which include transparency, fairness, accountability, and privacy. It likewise requires organizations that develop or deploy AI technologies to adhere to these principles and to conduct risk assessments and impact analyses before deploying their technologies,” he said.
Moreover, Barbers said the bill includes provisions to protect the privacy and personal data of individuals to prevent discrimination and bias in AI technologies, ensure that AI systems are safe and secure, for organizations to be transparent about their use of AI, and provide meaningful explanations for the decisions made by AI systems.
The proposed national AI agency, he said, would also act as a “watchdog” to guard and penalize unscrupulous individuals that would take advantage of or use of AI for their selfish or criminal ends.
“Sa paglabas ng bagong technolohiya na AI, tiyak din na may mga tao na gagamitin ito sa kasamaan. At kailangan handa rin tayo para kaharapin ito,” Barbers said.
