Trust. A complex concept that affects all human relationships. But what happens when you have to trust an AI tool? Who makes the rules and how can these rules ensure that the tool will respect your (human) rights and avoid biases? That said, to develop a responsible and ethical AI tool, it is vital to explain how it works and how it is regulated. In the case of AI4Gov, this will be taken care of by the Holistic Regulatory Framework (HRF).
The relevance of bias to human rights is profound. Human rights are inherent to all individuals, regardless of their background, identity, or characteristics. However, bias can undermine these rights, impeding equal access to opportunities, resources, and fair treatment. It can also perpetuate inequality, discrimination, and marginalisation, particularly for underrepresented groups. When bias comes into play, it can have far-reaching consequences for human rights. Bias can lead to discrimination, inequality, and the violation of basic rights. Ultimately, it can result in denial of opportunities or equal access to resources and services.
The HRF refers to a comprehensive structure and a set of guidelines intended to govern the use of AI and Big Data in the context of democracy and EU values. This framework aims to ensure that AI technologies, especially when applied to governmental processes or services, adhere to fundamental rights and values, do not perpetuate bias or discrimination, and respect existing laws, regulations, and ethical standards. It seeks to address these concerns, ensuring that the platform is just, equitable, and compliant with prevailing standards and laws.
To ascertain a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities in integrating AI and Big Data in governance and policy-making, a systematic procedure was initiated with the objective of constructing the AI-based Democracy HRF. The core procedure revolved around implementing the Delphi method to undertake a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis for the HRF. Afterwards, a panel of experts with proficiency in AI governance and policy-making was chosen. Leveraging the insights from the SWOT analysis, preliminary guidelines, and recommendations for the HRF were formulated. The focus was to ensure that the deployment of AI and Big Data in policy management remained democratic, transparent, and aligned with ethical standards.
Currently, the main aspects of AI4Gov’s HRF are:
Defining Bias and Discrimination
The HRF provides a holistic definition of bias, discrimination, unfairness, and non-inclusiveness. This involves a) aligning both technical definitions (from the AI/tech side) with social science definitions and b) understanding how these two aspects interact when AI and Big Data technologies are developed or deployed.
Ensuring Compliance with EU Values and Regulations
The framework seeks to evaluate the AI4Gov Platform’s alignment with current EU regulations concerning fundamental rights and values. This ensures that the technologies developed and deployed respect the rights of citizens and adhere to important regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Qualitative Analysis of Rights and Values
To ensure that the HRF takes under consideration all potential forms of bias, a qualitative analysis is being held, focusing on understanding how traditional (non-AI) biases might currently affect the rights and values of certain citizen groups, such as ethnic minorities, migrants, religious groups, and persons with disabilities. This part of the HRF aims to uncover areas where discrimination might be overlooked, especially in relation to existing EU regulations on human rights protection.
Specification and Design of the Framework
The HRF provides a mapping of the existing processes to a policy management lifecycle and highlights enhancements through proposed AI solutions. The HRF will be based on qualitative analyses of fundamental rights, EU values, legal activities, and ethical protocols. It will ensure that citizens are protected from potential abuses resulting from AI and Big Data use and that the framework adheres to existing laws, protocols, and ethical recommendations.
Reference Architecture
The HRF acts as the ethical and regulatory compass, ensuring that the reference architecture developed is not only technologically robust but also ethically sound, legally compliant, and fundamentally aligned with the overarching goals and values of the AI4Gov project. The HRF will play a role in how different components of the architecture will interact with each other, both in terms of data flow and functional hierarchy, ensuring that the interactions remain compliant with the ethical, legal, and functional standards the framework sets forth. In the realm of AI and Big Data, the flow and processing of information are of paramount importance. The HRF provides guidelines on how data should be collected, processed, stored, and shared, ensuring that privacy, fairness, and security are maintained throughout. Moreover, it needs to be noted that the HRF is not just a set of guidelines or a checklist for the project. It will serve as a foundational blueprint for the entirety of the AI4Gov architecture. By aligning with the HRF, the project ensures that the architecture, and by extension, all its subsequent developments and deployments, operate within a framework that respects human rights, EU values, and ethical considerations.
In essence, the HRF in AI4Gov provides a thorough, multi-faceted approach to ensuring that AI and Big Data technologies are developed and used responsibly, ethically, and in line with the fundamental rights and values of the European Union (EU).
