It’s a digital world now, and more than ever, technology plays an integral part in our lives. OpenAI, a leading artificial intelligence research company, might be in for a rude awakening after being temporarily banned in Italy and facing a slew of investigations in other EU countries for non-compliance with data protection laws. To make matters worse, experts have stated that it is next to impossible for the company to become compliant due to the way their data has been collected.
OpenAI is a San Francisco based research laboratory created by the renowned science entrepreneur and model incubator Sam Altman. The company focuses on developing Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies through the use of deep learning and computing power. OpenAI was created to “advance digital intelligence in the way that is most likely to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return.”
The company has been under investigation in the EU for collecting data without explicit consent and failing to delete it after being requested by the data protection authorities. Although the company is not legally obliged to comply with the European GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) it was temporarily banned in Italy and is facing significant fines if it doesn’t comply with the EU requirements within a week.
Moreover, since the pandemic closed schools in 2020, young students have been left to learn on their school-issued laptops and tablets. This poses a new challenge for educators, where the technology may be changing how students read. Research has found that screen reading is fundamentally different from reading on the page and there is little to no guidance on how to balance the use of both. Furthermore, most teachers are having to “wing it” without proper guidance.
OpenAI’s data disaster has set a precedent for companies that are collecting data for AI models and has forced them to take a closer look into the process of how their data is collected, stored and secured in order to avoid hefty fines and investigations. It has once again shown the importance of protecting data and the need for more guidelines on how to properly use technology for teaching and learning.
