China is developing stricter regulations on the application of human-like artificial intelligence (AI) by enforcing that providers undertake measures to make their services ethical, secure, and transparent.
The country’s cyberspace watchdog said in a statement on its website on December 27 that the user must know they are interacting with AI upon signing in to a service, or when indicators of overdependence become apparent. The proposals are open for public consultation until January 25.
The Cyberspace Administration of China reported that the designed AI systems that are supposed to behave like human beings should also install effective security and ethical review mechanisms with “core socialist values” and cancelling from publishing content that might compromise national security.
China is promoting AI as one of its strategic sectors, and it is investing heavily in new technologies to ensure economic growth and competitiveness in the global market. Therefore, the authorities are keen to maintain governance to preserve security and social stability.
The draft proposals require providers who introduce any human-like AI functionality to undertake a security assessment and provide a report to the provincial cyberspace administration. Services achieving one million registered users or 100,000 monthly active users will also require a report.
