First progress report of the Ad-hoc Committee on Artificial Intelligence
Almost exactly one year ago, the Ad-hoc Committee on Artificial Intelligence (CAHAI) was established under the auspices of the Council of Europe. Its main task was to analyse the feasibility of creating a legal framework for development, design and application of artificial intelligence (AI) in accordance with the standards of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. On 23 September 2020, the Committee of Ministers confirmed the first progress report of CAHAI.
The progress report plans out clear steps to be undertaken in order to achieve a legal instrument that will lead to broader use of AI while respecting human rights, the rule of law and democracy. This is all the more important in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic. CAHAI will presumably address the findings of the report at its third plenary meeting in December, and will hold numerous stakeholders’ consultations in 2021, leading to the finalisation of the elements of the legal framework for the use of AI.
The discussion in the first panel was led by Dr Maja Bogataj Jančič, who is co-chair of the Data Governance Working Group at the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence (GPAI). The second panel was chaired by Gregor Strojin, Chair of the Council of Europe’s Ad hoc Committee on Artificial Intelligence (CAHAI). The speakers focused mainly on the proposal for the Artificial Intelligence Act. In addition to the regulatory activities currently underway at the Council of Europe and the EU, the OECD and UNESCO also presented their activities.
The European Court of Justice (CJEU) has finally (almost a year since the Advocate General opinion, on which IPI already reported) issued a ruling in joined cases C-682/18 (YouTube) and C-683/18 (Cyando), concerning platform liability for copyright-infringing user uploads under Art. 3(1) InfoSoc Directive. Even though the CJEU, in its ruling, refrained from engaging with the DSM Directive’s Article 17, the judgment is still highly significant, as it comms at a time when the fundamental rights compatibility of Art. 17 DSM Directive is in question, and very few Member States have implemented the DSM Directive, including Slovenia, where the public debate ended on 28th of June, 2021.
On 15th of July Advocate General Saugmandsgaard Øe has issued an Opinion on Case C-401/19, the Polish request to annul Article 17 of the DSM directive. Since the opinion provides an important clarification on user rights safeguards, COMMUNIA is organising a special lunch edition of COMMUNIA salon, on Wednesday, the 21st of July at 1300, on which these clarifications will be analysed.
On 20 July 2021, the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Slovenia will host a virtual conference focusing on the effective protection of fundamental rights in the regulation of artificial intelligence in Europe and beyond. The event will be moderated by Dr. Maja Bogataj Jančič, LL.M., LL.M., founder and head of the Institute for Intellectual Property, who is also the Co-Chair of the Data Governance Group at the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence (GPAI).