By Canadian Press

Ottawa rolls out voluntary code of conduct for AI as ‘fear’ persists over its use

Sep 27, 2023 | 9:33 AM

MONTREAL — The federal government is unfurling a voluntary code of conduct for generative AI as anxiety persists over its proliferation and pace of development.

Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the code on Wednesday at the All In artificial intelligence conference in Montreal, where Canadian technology companies including OpenText and Cohere pledged to sign on.

The document lays out measures organizations can take when working in generative AI — the algorithmic engine behind chatbots such as ChatGPT, which can spit out anything from term papers to psychotherapy.

The government says the measures align with six key principles that include equity, transparency and human oversight.

Amid both excitement and angst over the seemingly boundless scale of AI advancement, the federal government in June tabled a bill outlining a general approach to AI guardrails and leaves details to a later date, saying it will come into force no sooner than 2025.

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Artificial intelligence pioneer Yoshua Bengio, who has stated the legislation puts Canada on the right path even as progress remains too slow, says public fear still hangs over the sector and that more investment toward safety and standards is essential.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2023.

The Canadian Press