On 29 September 2020, Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) was invited by the Observatory TuttiMedia to contribute to the webinar on Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation, organized under the PAM auspices. Ambassador Sergio Piazzi, PAM Secretary General represented the Assembly at the webinar.
TuttiMedia is a cultural association composed by editorial and communication industries, created with the purpose of spreading and maintaining the role of culture in an era of digital transformation.
The objective of the webinar was to discuss the function and impacts of Artificial Intelligence in the fields of ethics, information, advertisement, as well as on journalism and in the editorial sector.
In the first part of the event, the discussion focused on conceptual description and function of data and algorithms and provided insights on how to create the right instruments to keep pace with this transformation in the technological filed.
Acknowledging the importance of ethics in the AI debate, the speakers also tackled the economic and politico-social dimension and stressed the importance to ensure an equal distribution of benefits and advantages of use AI among countries, while keeping control on the development of this digital transformation. The issue of fake news, the polarization of opinions and the consequent isolation and loss of dialogue were also addressed, calling for an effective regulatory system based on transparency and coordination between States.
In his remarks, Ambassador Piazzi focused on the ethical and legal challenges, stressing that the development of AI should be human-centred, sustainable and go hand in hand with the respect of human rights principles, national and international law. He also stressed the urgent need to set a regulatory and legal framework and the fundamental role of parliamentarians in contributing to a global governance of AI. This is crucial for stemming and avoiding the malevolent application of such technology in all spheres.
In light of this concern, he referred to the work done by PAM on AI in relation to the security dimension and the fight against terrorism and the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. In particular, at the 14th PAM Plenary Session in Athens a report on Human Rights referring to the use of AI was presented, and the Assembly decided to establish a special task force on AI and Human Rights. A thematic report on is being finalized by the PAM Secretariat as supporting document to elaborate guidelines on AI for Parliamentarians, in collaboration the UN High Representative for Human Rights, the OECD, the European Council, the Arab Parliament and other key partners. This process aims at harmonizing legislation and ensuring the respect of human and fundamental rights in the Euro-Mediterranean region.