Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing our lives at an unprecedented rate, and tech firms such as OpenAI are beginning to recognize this. OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman was recently involved in an AI Senate hearing where he re-affirmed his beliefs in ensuring “guardrails for AI” and shortly after, the company released a blog post with a proposal for international AI regulations, outlining ways to manage the risks of this rapidly emerging technology. In this article, I will discuss the AI regulations proposed by OpenAI; while exploring the challenges of implementing them in real-life.
OpenAI’s proposal for AI regulations included the need to collaborate with leading governments to ensure the safety of artificial intelligence. They suggested two ways in which governments could restrict AI development: firstly, by collaborating with multiple AI companies to create projects following certain rules; and secondly, by coming to a consensus on a yearly development limit. Additionally, they proposed a similar body to the International Atomic Energy Agency that would monitor the development of AI worldwide. OpenAI’s proposals suggested ways to start the regulatory program, with voluntary implementation from the companies and individual nations being some of them.
Anthropic is one of the companies leading the way in ethical AI development. They have created an alternative to OpenAI’s ChatGPT AI called “Claude” which follows three principles for AI development: beneficence, nonmaleficence, and autonomy. OpenAI also released a blog detailing ways to limit artificial general intelligence (AGI).
The biggest challenge in AI regulations is predicting its development. AI companies across numerous countries are building chatbots, media systems, and other forms of software which are rapidly changing the way we live our lives. We cannot assume that controlling the development of one company like OpenAI would be enough; experts in many areas are developing AI with differing levels of regulation.
Additionally, the changes AI creates are often too fast for governments to implement legal regulations for them. AI development is moving faster than we can regulate, which is why OpenAI’s proposals need to be taken into serious consideration – in order to truly benefit from this technology, we must have effective laws which govern its development and use.
OpenAI leader’s suggested regulations to manage the risks of AI are an important step in the right direction, and soon countries worldwide will have similar laws to address this issue. By understanding these regulations, we can begin to prepare for the inevitable changes ahead, and ensure that AI is used only for the benefit of all.
