India's guidelines on AI governance will aid innovation

Last week, the ministry of electronics and information technology released the India AI Governance Guidelines, a proposed framework for governing artificial intelligence (AI).

- RAHUL MATTHAN

As a member of the committee that had been tasked with drafting the final report, it is gratifying to see the recommendations become the basis on which AI will be governed in the country.

At the outset, it is important to clarify that this document sets out the committee's recommendations on how the country should approach AI governance. It is up to the government to review them and take the steps it thinks appropriate for implementation.

The committee unanimously agreed to base the guidelines in the same seven principles that had been proposed in the Reserve Bank of India’s FREE-AI Committee report (of which I was also a part). Those principles were modified slightly so that they could be applied beyond the financial sector and aligned with national priorities. I am glad to see that the pro-innovation tilt these principles embody has become the hallmark of AI governance in India.