To ensure AI benefits all, India needs to put guardrails in place

The likely safety and security concerns that unbridled use of AI may pose to the country's citizens make up almost 18 percent of the global population.

Even as India strives to develop a strong and robust ecosystem to spur innovations in the artificial intelligence domain, authorities should now consider formally putting in place guardrails for AI to ensure that the technology is used responsibly and is beneficial to all -- in the world’s most populous nation.

Setting norms for how AI is to be used assumes importance given the risks associated with the technology that go beyond being able to manipulate content or generate deceptive content, and the likely safety and security concerns that unbridled use of artificial intelligence may pose to the country's more than 1.4 billion citizens who make up almost 18 percent of the global population.

Incidentally, concern about the risks posed by AI to society was most recently highlighted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Addressing the virtual G20 Leaders’ Summit on November 22, the PM said: “We have to move forward, understanding the seriousness of how dangerous DeepFake is, for society, for the individual. We desire that AI should reach the people, and it must be safe for the society.”

While inaugurating the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) Summit 2023 on December 12, the Prime Minister had expressed similar concerns. He had stated then: “There are many positive aspects of AI, but the negative aspects related to it are also a matter of equal concern”.

Safeguarding Local Interests

Any guardrails for AI in India should factor in the local context so that these can mitigate risk concerns and yet not act as a stumbling block for innovations. It is important, though, that timelines are set for putting the guardrails in place and roles and responsibilities of the agencies involved is also clearly defined.

Considering the rapid advancements in AI technologies, a permanent institutional mechanism in the form of a dedicated high-powered Committee for Artificial Intelligence at the national level, comprising representatives of the Union and state governments, and from business and civil society, may ideally also be set up to be able to respond quickly on issues related to AI safety in India.

A good starting point for the AI risks mitigation endeavour in India could be by assessing whether it would be worthwhile to emulate here some of the actions underlined as part of the Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence issued by US President Joe Biden in October 2023. Especially the ones in the said Executive Order that require developers of the most powerful AI systems share their safety test results and other critical information with the government, and the development of standards, tools, and tests to help ensure that AI systems are safe, secure, and trustworthy.

Global AI Framework 

While in the long run, a global regulatory framework on AI may be what is necessary to ensure that artificial intelligence benefits people everywhere irrespective of whether they stay and their social and economic status, India waiting for such a mechanism to be in place before starting to act on AI safety may not benefit its citizens. After all, if the US and China, the world’s biggest players in the AI arena, have not waited for this global regulation to be in place before acting on artificial intelligence-related safety measures for their citizens, there is no reason for India, already the world’s 5^th largest economy, to also not take similar initiatives.

As a country committed to the mantra of 'Sabka Vikas' (development for all), India has a splendid opportunity to showcase to the rest of the world how sophisticated technology can be leveraged to become a force for good for everyone. Achieving success on this front could also help India have a bigger say in the formulation of a global AI regulation and further cement its reputation as a nation whose voice resounds strongly on issues that matter internationally.

Sumali Moitra is a current affairs commentator. Views expressed are personal. Twitter: @sumalimoitra. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication.