China Considers Stricter AI Regulations

The Chinese government is contemplating new artificial intelligence (AI) development regulations emphasizing content control and licensing.

The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) wants to require local companies to obtain a license before releasing generative AI systems, according to a Financial Times report dated July 11.

This action signifies a tightening of April’s initial draft regulations, which gave companies ten business days after the product launch to register it with the appropriate authorities.

According to sources cited by the FT, the new licensing scheme is expected to be included in upcoming regulations that will be released by the end of this month.

In the April draft of the regulations, mandatory security reviews of AI-generated content were also included.

In its draft, the government stated that all content must “embody core socialist values” and not “subvert state authority, advocate the overthrow of the socialist system, incite national division, or undermine national unity.”

Baidu and Alibaba, two Chinese tech and e-commerce companies, have both released AI tools this year, with the latter rivaling the popular AI chatbot ChatGPT.

According to sources cited in the FT report, both companies have contacted regulators in recent months to ensure that their products adhere to the new regulations.

In addition to the implications of the forthcoming regulations, the draft also states that the Chinese government holds tech companies that develop AI models fully accountable for any content created using their products.

Global regulators have advocated for the regulation of AI-generated content.

Senator Michael Bennet recently penned a letter to tech companies developing the technology to label AI-generated content in the United States.

Vera Jourova, vice president of the European Commission for Values and Transparency, recently told the media that she believes generative AI tools with the “potential to generate disinformation” must label the content they produce to prevent the spread of disinformation.