The government’s goal is to develop artificial intelligence within a responsible and safe framework, according to Sigbjorn Jelsvik.
The government takes development seriously.
In an article published in the newspaper Aftenposten on September 17, researcher Axel Brannen Sterry and associate professor Inga Strömke called for a clear AI policy in Norway.
The government already has a clear AI policy, set out in the National AI Strategy.
The government recently put forward a proposal to spend 1 billion kroner over the next five years on research into artificial intelligence.
An important purpose of this project is specifically to find out what consequences AI technology will have on Norwegian society.
Norwegian and Norwegian businesses face challenges such as globalization, an aging population and climate change. Digitization and artificial intelligence are key elements in dealing with these societal challenges of the future, while working to enhance well-being.
People, not machines
We know that AI provides new insights and contributes to improving medicine, transportation, and climate, among other things. Technology has also contributed to enabling the public sector to provide better services to people.
Residents must be confident that humans, not machines, make decisions and control development
AI is already used in many companies in the health sector, for example for cancer diagnosis, or in the field of transport and energy, among others, for maintenance.
At the same time, artificial intelligence creates new ethical challenges and dilemmas. Therefore, we will continue to develop the policy through a new national digitalization strategy that will be introduced next year.
The government’s goal is to develop artificial intelligence within a responsible and safe framework. Residents must be confident that humans, not machines, make decisions and control development.
The need for national organization
The European Union has proposed new AI rules to ensure that the development and use of these systems is responsible and in compliance with our fundamental rights.
In 2021, the European Commission put forward a proposal for a regulation on artificial intelligence (AI Regulation). This is the world’s first proposal for a legal framework to regulate artificial intelligence.
The government has set up a rapid working group to assess the need for national regulation of artificial intelligence. This working group will also develop a plan for the incorporation of the EU Regulation on AI (Regulation of Artificial Intelligence) into Norwegian law and its good implementation in due course, upon its adoption in the EU.
Develops an ongoing policy
It is important to keep in mind that the laws we already have in Norway also apply to artificial intelligence. This applies, for example, to the Personal Data Act, the Equality and Prohibition of Discrimination Act, and the Public Administration Act. The same applies to regulations within different sectors, for example health and transport.
Artificial intelligence knows no national borders, and the government is busy influencing international developments in this field so that Norwegian interests are well protected. Therefore, Norway has actively participated in ongoing processes in the European Union, the Council of Europe and the OECD.
Artificial Intelligence is a force that affects society on a large scale, and it will impact people’s business lives, work lives, and private lives to a greater degree than ever before. Therefore, the government takes the development of artificial intelligence seriously, and is constantly developing policy in the face of new challenges.
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