PACE welcomes draft convention on AI and human rights – but regrets it will not fully cover the private sector

 
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has warmly welcomed the finalisation of the draft Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence, Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law which has been drawn up within the Council of Europe – but regretted that it “does not cover to an equal extent public and private actors”.

Under the procedure for the drafting of a Council of Europe treaty, the Assembly must give its opinion before it is adopted by the organisation’s executive body, the Committee of Ministers. It will be the first ever international treaty on AI, open to all states worldwide, on which ratifying states should base their national laws.

Unanimously approving its opinion today, based on a report by Thórhildur Sunna Ævarsdóttir (Iceland SOC), the Assembly said: “Many AI systems are developed and deployed by private entities, and introducing a differentiated approach for the private sector creates a significant loophole.” (...)