The EU has taken a major step towards passing one of the world’s first laws governing artificial intelligence after its main legislative branch approved the text of draft legislation that includes a blanket ban on police use of live facial recognition technology in public places.
The European parliament approved rules aimed at setting a global standard for the technology, which encompasses everything from automated medical diagnoses to some types of drone, AI-generated videos known as deepfakes, and bots such as ChatGPT.
MEPs will now thrash out details with EU countries before the draft rules become legislation.
“AI raises a lot of questions socially, ethically, economically. But now is not the time to hit any ‘pause button’. On the contrary, it is about acting fast and taking responsibility,” said Thierry Breton, the European commissioner for the internal market.
A rebellion by centre-right MEPs in the EPP political grouping over an outright ban on real-time facial recognition on the streets of Europe failed to materialise, with a number of politicians attending Silvio Berlusconi’s funeral in Italy.
European leaders are expected to push back on a total ban on biometrics, with police forces across the continent keen to utilise the potential to recognise criminals as they walk down a street or through public areas.
The EPP had argued the technology could be of vital importance in combating crime and in counter-terrorism intelligence as well as in searches for missing children.
There is also growing clamour to regulate AI across the Atlantic, as pressure grows on western governments to act fast in what some describe as a battle to protect humanity. While AI proponents hail the technology for how it will transform society, including work, healthcare and creative pursuits, others are worried by its potential to undermine democracy. Even if the EU’s ambitious target to reach an agreement on the law by the end of the year is achieved, it would not come into force until 2026 at the earliest, forcing the EU to push for a voluntary interim pact with tech companies.
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Next year French police will be using artificial intelligence algorithms to manage crowds at the summer Olympics, something that may not be allowed in the future.
Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s antitrust chief, told reporters that a balance might yet be struck as parliament reflected those who supported a ban on principled grounds relating to privacy as well as others who take a “slightly more pragmatic or security-oriented approach”.
