European Commission launches AI Alliance

The European Commission has formally announced the launch of the European AI Alliance, which includes the appointment of 52 domain experts to the High Level Group on Artificial Intelligence.

Formed to make recommendations on how European companies and policy makers can address the challenges and opportunities surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) in the medium and long term, the work carried out by the High Level Group on Artificial Intelligence is designed to feed directly into the policy development and legislative evaluation processes - meaning the ethics guidelines which will form one of the groups first tasks could underpin future laws on AI development and exploitation in Europe.

'Artificial intelligence brings huge potential benefits, but also challenges, and therefore it is essential to involve all actors, including from academia, business, and civil society,' claims Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, of the formation of the Group. 'I am confident that, together, we will ensure that AI systems are developed for good and for all, respecting our values and fundamental rights.'

The formation of the Group comes following a call for applications issued back in March and the April release of the Commission Communication on Artificial Intelligence for Europe. While the Group is open only to the specifically-selected experts in their fields, the wider European AI Alliance, with which the Group will work hand-in-hand, is open to anyone interested in joining the debate on AI technology development and exploitation.