Italy Bans ChatGPT As Tech Leaders Call For a Pause in AI Development
OpenAI’s Chatbot ChatGPT is temporarily banned in Italy. Photo: Florence Lo | Reuters
The first nationwide government regulation against ChatGPT rolled out on March 31, with Italy calling for a temporary ban of ChatGPT. The powerful AI chatbot operated by OpenAI faces mounting concern from legislators in the US and EU who question its safety due to the amount of data it collects and the caliber of its computing power. Over a thousand global tech leaders, including Elon Musk, went a step further and endorsed an open letter published by the Future of Life Institute that calls for a pause in AI development and warns of AI’s consequences on mankind.
OpenAI launched ChatGPT in Nov. 2022. The chatbot made headlines for its ability to answer just about any question instantaneously by compiling data from the internet. Since its launch, the race to develop high-power AI has accelerated, with OpenAI now offering the Chat-GPT4 software with incredible problem-solving power.
A privacy watchdog in Italy noted that on March 20, ChatGPT breached personal conversations and payment information. This prompted the watchdog to investigate whether ChatGPT follows the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Italy’s data protection authority found no legal basis for ChatGPT to gather as much data as it does for its algorithms. OpenAI asserts that ChatGPT follows all data privacy laws in Europe.
Italy’s privacy regulator ordered OpenAI to disable ChatGPT in Italy on Friday. OpenAI plans to work with the Italian government to make ChatGPT legal again. The data protection authority in Italy gave ChatGPT 20 days to outline their next steps. If OpenAI fails to satisfy the authorities, they will face a fine of either 4 percent of their annual revenue or $21.7 million.
ChatGPT will have to update its privacy policies, put checks on the age of its users to protect minors from inappropriate or harmful information and inform users about how their data may be used.
Other countries are taking note of Italy’s temporary ban. Ireland’s data protection commission contacted Italy’s data protection authority to understand the basis of their ban. Germany has also contacted Italy about the ban and reported that they could follow the same legal basis to ban ChatGPT should they feel the need to. The EU is currently working on legislation regulating AI usage by banning facial recognition, requiring ChatGPT and other chatbots to perform risk assessments and vet the quality of the data they collect.
Elon Musk Among Tech Leaders Calling For a Pause in AI Development. Photo: Jae C. Hong | AP
Italy’s ban comes days after the Future of Life Institute published an open letter calling for a six-month moratorium on the development of AI. Over 3,000 people have signed the letter including over 1,000 tech leaders. The letter opens with a warning that AI systems can pose ‘profound risks to society and humanity’ and lists the threats an out-of-control AI race can pose to mankind.
The letter addresses that the progress humanity has made with AI can be beneficial as long as society manages AI systems’ risks and ensures ethical use. The letter argues that the short-term and long-term risks are not well-managed right now and calls for a six-month pause in AI development to give humanity time to regulate it before it grows too powerful.
Major corporations have expressed concern about the ability of ChatGPT to threaten jobs. In a report released on March 26, Goldman Sachs revealed ChatGPT could affect almost 300 million jobs worldwide. The report noted that ChatGPT exposes almost two-thirds of jobs to some degree of automation in the US and Europe and one-quarter of jobs to total automation.
Given the risks to jobs and personal data privacy, it is no surprise that Italy temporarily banned ChatGPT. More countries may follow suit, especially in the EU, where careful compliance with the GDPR is strictly enforced.