UAE establishes new charter to ensure safe AI usage, equality

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Keen to improve its global artificial intelligence (AI) standing, the United Arab Emirates has announced a new charter for the technology to protect the interest of consumers within its borders.

The Charter for the Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence sets out guiding principles for AI developers with commercial offerings, imposing new liabilities and requirements for them. The charter, a brainchild of the UAE’s AI, Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications Office, appears to be in line with the country’s overarching Strategy for AI released in 2023.

The latest release advocates for consumers’ safety, urging service providers to include proper guardrails to protect their personal data from bad actors. A community reading of the newly minted charter reveals a desire to prevent minorities’ discrimination by introducing regulated audits to identify biases.

The new playbook urges service providers to inform users when they are interacting with AI systems while providing disclosures on the internal workings of their AI systems.

Firms are encouraged to adopt a human-centric approach in designing their AI models and avoid an overreliance on machine learning. UAE regulators are also particularly interested in the presence of feedback mechanisms in models, and developers are urged to take responsibility for their models’ negative consequences.

Omar Sultan Al Olama, the Minister in charge of the Office, said the Charter is designed to advance the UAE’s digital economy ambitions, quashing claims that the Charter may stunt innovation in the ecosystem. The Minister added that the principles included in the Charter aligns with existing AI rules operational in the country.

The UAE has been increasing its investment in AI following the successes gleaned from its tango with digital assets and blockchain technology. Rather than fork out funds solely for innovation, the country is focused on educating the majority of its residents on the fundamentals of AI to provide a talent pipeline for firms in the industry.

Localized models from the UAE, like Falcon and Jais, have demonstrated success in improving adoption rates, putting the country at the center of global technology innovation.

A clear leader in the Middle East

The UAE is the undisputed leader for all things AI in the Middle East, buoyed by the independent plays of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Dubai has opted to subsidize and relax the licensing rules for AI firms, while Abu Dhabi is playing host to global AI innovators via its free-trade zone and other perks.

While the UAE is moving forward, other states in the Middle East are making measured progress with AI. Saudi Arabia and Qatar have since unveiled their localized large language model (LLM) , with the region’s annual AI spending expected to surpass $5 billion by 2026.

In order for artificial intelligence (AI) to work right within the law and thrive in the face of growing challenges, it needs to integrate an enterprise blockchain system that ensures data input quality and ownership—allowing it to keep data safe while also guaranteeing the immutability of data. Check out CoinGeek’s coverage on this emerging tech to learn more why Enterprise blockchain will be the backbone of AI.

Watch: Understanding the dynamics of blockchain & AI