THE AI IMPERATIVE: WHY REGULATION CAN'T WAIT

FAMOUS English mathematician Alan Turing once said, "A computer would deserve to be called intelligent if it could deceive a human into believing it was human."

- THAMIZHACHI THANGAPANDIAN

AMOUS English mathematician Alan Turing once said, "A computer would deserve to be called intelligent if it could deceive a human into believing it was human."

The same thought was encapsulated in the rigorous Turing Test, where a human interrogates an entity. If, after completion, the interrogator cannot tell whether the entity is human or machine, the entity is said to be 'intelligent'.

But modern technological research has pushed the boundaries of innovation in intelligent computing, corroborated by the fact that multiple programmes like chatbot Eugene Goostman and OpenAI's GPT-4 have passed the test.

Today, these intelligent programmes have altered the way we study, research, practice, profession, etc. But along with this comes a threat of its potential misuse in disrupting work, lives, society and even democracy.

AI systems have exacerbated societal biases because of the biased data they are fed without any recognition of historical context or social injustice. Computer-aided diagnosis systems have been found to give higher returns for white patients than others. Security datasets used by the police could amplify bias against certain communities. All of these could result in forming parochial narratives.

Further, with the growing use of sophisticated AI systems, various jobs have become redundant, and more will follow suit. This would mostly displace workers from a disadvantaged socio-economic background, exacerbating inequalities. While there is some evidence that AI will create new jobs, the process of skilling for these jobs remains ambiguous.