Karan Jain
CEO
In September 2022 the fourth set of compromises of the EU’s AI Act was shared, and MEPs continue to debate the legislation. The Commission and its Member States have joined forces on policy and investments. It is good to see the regulatory authorities and policymaking bodies in the field acting on AI propositions through a risk-based and human-centric approach as they carry out the European Union’s (EU) vision end-to-end by ensuring that the AI strategy aligns with the fundamental rights and EU digital acquis.
So what might these Digital Sandboxes for AI look like? Digital regulatory sandboxes are the latest in a new set of tools for regulators to develop and test policy and engage with the technology ecosystem. Digital regulatory sandboxes provide data sets, sandboxes for AI model building and testing, integrated technology to accelerate access to AI for start-ups and small businesses, increase industry collaboration to encourage legal and regulatory certainty, and enable tests of the implementation of policy and common approaches.
Key developments so far:
- The AI Act attempts to regulate AI models via coordinated regulatory sandboxes that will allow innovators and regulators to test, experiment and validate innovative AI systems under agile governance.
- The Act is also witnessing an impact beyond Europe – Brazil’s Congress passed a bill to create a legal framework for artificial intelligence in September 2021.
- A pilot of the first AI regulatory sandbox was presented in June by the government of Spain and the European Commission. This sandbox initiative acts as a step in future-proofing and aims to promote the best practice guidelines in operationalising AI activities.
- Certain amendments have been considered so far to the initial draft of the AI Act, with the latest compromise text mandating the establishment of at least one AI regulatory sandbox by each member state.
- The member state also needs to consider the possibility of setting up the sandboxes at the regional or local level, jointly with other countries, or in collaboration with the European Data Protection Supervisor or the member states.
