The government is not considering any law to regulate the growth of artificial intelligence (AI) in India says IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

In a reply to the Lok Sabha, Vaishnaw says that though AI had proven to be an enabler of the digital and innovation ecosystem, it had ethical concerns and associated risks.

“AI has ethical concerns and risks due to issues such as bias and discrimination in decision-making, privacy violations, lack of transparency in AI systems, and questions about responsibility for harm caused by it,” Vaishnaw says.

These concerns, the minister said, had been highlighted by the National Strategy for AI report released in June 2018, adding that various central and state government agencies had started efforts to standardize responsible AI development.

“Additionally, NITI Aayog has published a series of papers on the subject of Responsible AI for all. However, the government is not considering bringing a law or regulating the growth of artificial intelligence in the country,” Vaishnaw adds.

The Minister of State for electronics and information technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar says, “The government was harnessing the potential of AI to provide personalized and interactive citizen-centric services.”

"Though there are no guiding principles set for state or union ministries when it comes to developing or deployment of AI solutions, they have been encouraged to have a clear understanding of the objective and scope for which the technology will be used," Chandrasekhar adds.

It urged all stakeholders – IT researchers, policymakers, academicians in other disciplines, industry leaders, and members of the civil society – to join the 'vital debate' on how to harness the power of AI positively which in turn will help evolve a national consensus on how best to utilize the technology for achieving the country's goals and meeting the aspirations of the young population.