A cross-party group of British MPs and peers has identified significant human rights risks stemming from artificial intelligence (AI), concluding that existing laws are not equipped to handle the scale of these threats. The Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) has published a report calling for a new bill specifically designed to address the "scale and seriousness" of these dangers.
"Nowhere in the world, including the UK, has a current legislative and regulatory approach to AI that is fit for purpose," said Alex Sobel MP, the committee's chair. The report highlights that AI has already been implicated in numerous human rights abuses, citing examples such as the creation of non-consensual sexualized images of women and girls and the scanning of individuals' faces without their consent.
The JCHR advocates for the establishment of a "single, independent AI oversight body... on a statutory basis." It argues that the current legal framework governing AI is "fragmented and difficult to navigate," leaving critical gaps in protection. The proposed AI Bill should establish a regulatory regime that categorizes AI systems by risk level, mandating more stringent obligations for higher-risk AI and models.
Furthermore, the committee suggests that obligations should extend across the entire AI lifecycle, ensuring that all parties involved in designing, modifying, and utilizing AI systems are aware of and effectively address their responsibilities. The report also proposes that certain uses of AI should be prohibited outright due to their incompatibility with human rights, with potential areas for action including subliminal techniques and inappropriate profiling or biometric data use.
"AI is heralded as an unprecedented era of technological development with the potential to transform our lives for better or for worse," Sobel stated. "It is moving with such speed and complexity that its impact is hard to accurately predict. What is clear is that at present we are unprepared to deal with its consequences however potentially dire they may be."
This call for new legislation comes amid growing global anxiety about the challenges posed by AI. Earlier in the week, Dario Amodei, head of the US AI company Anthropic, proposed a plan for AI regulation that includes global and industry-wide measures, alongside independent monitoring of AI models during their development. Amodei urged a slowdown in the pace of AI development, a sentiment echoed by leaders of rival firms OpenAI and Elon Musk.
Human rights concerns raised in recent years include the potential for AI to perpetuate biases against specific groups if trained on internet data containing racist, sexist, or other undesirable material. AI can also be used to generate and disseminate misinformation. Jacob Coxon, an AI researcher who recently left Anthropic, told the BBC that staff developing these systems were "genuinely frightened" for the future of humanity.
An Anthropic spokesperson stated that the company is building "models with some of the strongest safeguards in the industry." The JCHR's report, which comprises 100 pages, is authored by its 12 members drawn from both Houses of Parliament, including representatives from the Labour, Conservative, and Liberal Democrat parties. BBC News has reached out to the government for comment on the committee's call for an AI bill.