While discussions about AI regulation are happening worldwide, regulators in Southeast Asia are hoping to move as quickly as possible to create a framework as well as tools that will help the region use AI responsibly moving forward.
In February, ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) prioritised the development of regional “AI guide,” which they hope to have drafted by the end of 2023. And in Singapore, the IMDA recently established the AI Verify Foundation, which aims to use contributions from the global open-source community to develop a testing tool that enables the responsible use of AI, in the hopes of boosting AI-testing capabilities to meet the needs of companies and regulators globally.
Regulating technology – especially internet-based technology – has been a slow, gruelling, and complex, uphill battle. Though there have been strides made in protecting children and personal data, enforcing copyright, ensuring neutrality, and adjusting existing laws to include crimes that occur in cyberspace, regulating the ever-evolving way people use technology is a major challenge – especially when bad actors are involved.
It may seem cliché to compare the internet to the Wild West, but it is also apt. Advances are made at breakneck speed and information travels even faster. This unmatched ability to create and innovate at scale can be both to the benefit and detriment of society – and because of the benefits the internet and technology offer, regulation is a tricky topic. How do governments, companies, and organisations regulate technologies that can do so much good and spread critical information without hindering it?
With the rise of generative AI – an artificial intelligence technology that is able to produce text-based content, images, videos, audio, and synthetic data at scale – harmful disinformation and misinformation campaigns with the power to influence global public opinion like nothing we have seen before are being unleashed across social media platforms. Now is the time to take regulation seriously. And it is heartening to see that many governments are doing just that.
However, the task is a difficult one, and one that cannot be tackled hastily, despite the need for it to happen as quickly as possible.
The complexity of AI regulation
