Kathmandu, June 18: From government
agencies to private sectors and industries to innovations, artificial
intelligence (AI) is a global fad today.
Hefty amount is being poured in on
AI research and development in the developed countries, while developing ones
are also paying heed on how they could join the bandwagon.
After the spurt of AI, lately in
the ultimate months of 2022, and gradual expansion by the tech giants since
then, the governments, researchers and industries across the world are not only
fascinated but also worried if the AI goes beyond regulation. Similarly,
improving governance with AI is equally a growing concern among the
states.
Evidently, it is every government's
priority to improve public service, maintain efficiency in day to day works,
increase productivity, augment oversight, and make implementable policy and
action plans, where adoption of technology is central. And, it is AI to be
leveraged with cautions and proper regulation.
In this regard, a paper released
recently by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
has showcased how some states are utilizing the modern technology- AI- in the
government affairs and boosting service delivery.
The paper- 'Governing with
artificial intelligence: Are governments ready'- mentions various dimensions of
governance where AI can be leveraged and why trust in it is required to unlock
further potential.
"OECD countries are
increasingly investing in better understanding AI systems and using the
opportunities they provide to transform the machinery of government. The
responsible use of AI can improve the functioning of government administrations
in several ways," the document said, adding that AI increases
productivity.
According to the paper, once the
public sectors apply AI, it spurs productivity in government activities and
help design relevant and inclusive public policies; AI enables oversight
agencies, builds capacity and reinforces governmental accountability.
In an example how AI was used by
different countries for public services, it brought the reference that during
the COVID-19 pandemic, the Labour and Welfare Administration of Norway had used
a conversational AI which facilitated citizens to receive social benefits round
the clock. It was able to sort out 80 percent of enquiries, thereby avoiding
involvement of government employees.
"Transport Canada has piloted
the use of a risk-assessment algorithm to assess and identify potentially
high-risk cargo before it is loaded onto inbound aircraft," the paper
stated, adding that a custom-AI model called GiusBERTo has been applied in Court
of Auditors in Italy.
The facility "automatically
de-identifies and anonymises court decisions without sacrificing any important
information, a process previously done manually."
The document has also alerted over
the downsides lumped together with the use of AI, thereby underlining the need
of ethical and responsible development of AI. RSS