Europe’s strategy for AI and data governance will boost digital transformation

Published on June 10, 2021

Governments worldwide have been struggling for some time now to become truly digital, despite its well-known benefits and efficiencies. This is the same case with European countries, where the digital transformation of services offered was somewhat accelerated due to the pandemic; however, it still has a long way to go. But with the new legal framework for AI and data proposed on 21st April 2021, it is expected that governments will finally be able to accelerate the pace of change.

Both the USA and China have tried to assure their dominance in the industry regarding AI development and deployment. For this reason, the EU is attempting to take the global lead by focusing on and promoting European values and trustworthiness. AI has impacted many people’s lives by making healthcare diagnosis more precise, enabling better prevention of diseases, increasing farming efficiency, increasing security, etc. Its effects are much more than we can begin to imagine. 

Shaping Europe’s digital future in a way that serves people

The EU is not only trying to develop AI further- but it’s also trying to make it more secure. After all, Artificial Intelligence entails several potential risks, such as opaque decision-making, discrimination, intrusion in private lives, or being used for criminal purposes. As digital technology becomes a more central part of every aspect of our lives, we should be able to trust it. This is a chance for Europe to build reliable, safe, and sophisticated products and services.   

In her political guideline, commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced a coordinated European approach on the human and ethical implications of AI and a reflection on the better use of big data for innovation. Technology should serve people and not the other way round. For this reason, the development and the uptake of technology must make a real positive difference in our daily lives.

The first pillars of the new EU digital strategy

The Data and AI Strategy are the first pillars of the new digital strategy of the European Commission. They all focus on putting people’s needs first while defending and promoting European values and rights. For this reason, there are four requirements regarding AI and data: 

• AI systems should provide clear information to users about its purpose, capabilities, and its limits so that every user is clear about its implications when they are interacting with an AI.
• They must be technically robust and accurate so that they can be trustworthy
• They should be trained in such way that it respects European values and rules
• They should always ensure a necessary level of human involvement.

Despite these proposals, I believe that it will be a little bit challenging to measure if these requirements are correctly put in place since they are somewhat broad-brush.

Artificial Intelligence operates using big data- the more data it has, the smarter the algorithms. That’s why all businesses, researchers, and public services must have access to all the data that is out there. But if it’s managed, it will be able to develop ecosystems that benefit the whole of European society and economy:  

• Citizens will be able to reap new benefits such as improved health care, better working household machinery, better public services, safer and cleaner transport systems.
• Businesses will have a more significant development due to a new generation of products and services offered in different sectors.
• Services of public interest will have lower costs for transport, education, energy, and waste management. Moreover, there will be an improvement in the sustainability of products, and law enforcement authorities will be equipped with appropriate tools to ensure the security of people while still respecting their rights and freedoms. 

Enabling digital transformation

This European strategy aims at creating a single market for AI and data that will ensure Europe’s global competitiveness and data sovereignty. The lack of a clear legal framework and reliable guidance has impaired the digital transformation of governments, but everything will change now. Moving forward, the country leaders will need to take further steps to ensure data quality and accuracy across their current silos. They will need to implement governance policies that will support Artificial Intelligence model management towards the policy of responsible, reliable, transparent, and fair use of AI and data by public authorities.

The success of Europe’s digital transformation depends not only on the technological capabilities of different countries but also on their coordinated efforts toward the same vision: the digitisation and the administration of public services in a more holistic and sustainable manner, and above all it must take an experience-first-led approach rather than a technology-first-led approach.

Sources:

1.  https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_20_294
2. https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/strategy-data
3. https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/default/files/commission-white-paper-artificial-intelligence-feb2020_en.pdf
4. https://www.accessnow.org/cms/assets/uploads/2020/12/Europes-approach-to-AI-strategy-is-evolving.pdf

About the Author

Mohammad J Sear is focused on bringing purpose to digital in government.

He has obtained his leadership training from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, USA and holds an MBA from the University of Leicester, UK.

After a successful 12+ years career in the UK government during the premiership of three Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher, John Major and Tony Blair, Mohammad moved to the private sector and has now for 20+ years been advising government organizations in the UK, Middle East, Australasia and South Asia on strategic challenges and digital transformation.

He is currently working for Ernst & Young (EY) and leading the Digital Government practice efforts across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and is also a Digital Government and Innovation lecturer at the Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences Po, France.

As a thought-leader some of the articles he has authored include: “Digital is great but exclusion isn’t – make data work for driving better digital inclusion” published in Harvard Business Review, “Holistic Digital Government” published in the MIT Technology Review, “Want To Make Citizens Happy – Put Experience First” published in Forbes Middle East.

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