MCI response to PQ on the work of the Advisory Council on the Ethical Use of AI and Data

03 FEB 2020

Parliament Sitting on 3 February 2020

QUESTION FOR WRITTEN ANSWER

21. Mr Murali Pillai: To ask the Minister for Communications and Information whether he can provide an update on the work of the advisory council set up in 2018 to promote the ethical collection and use of data obtained from persons without their specific knowledge or consent for commercial use. 

Answer:

  1. The Advisory Council on the Ethical Use of AI and Data was formed in 2018 to provide guidance to the Government on the responsible development and deployment of AI.  

  2. It has made a good start in helping organisations improve their AI governance practices.  It obtained industry views and advised the Government in developing and updating Singapore’s Model AI Governance Framework (“Model Framework”), which translates ethical principles including human-centricity and safety into pragmatic measures that organisations can adopt voluntarily.  This is important to engender public trust and acceptance of AI.  A wide range of organisations is now using the Model Framework for their AI deployments.

  3. The Advisory Council also provided valuable input to the Implementation and Self-Assessment Guide for Organisations and Compendium of Use Cases, which help organisations apply the Model Framework.  These two documents were released together with the second edition of the Model Framework in January 2020 at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos.  Collectively, they have helped to shape norms and advance Singapore’s thought leadership in AI governance. 

  4. The Advisory Council actively engages the community and industry on AI and data developments, including encouraging their adoption of the Model Framework.  It also provides guidance to the Research Programme on Governance of AI and Data Use, hosted by the Singapore Management University, in advancing research and thought leadership in AI and data governance.  

  5. The Government will continue to work closely with the Advisory Council to help organisations use AI and data responsibly, including supporting more organisations to adopt the Model Framework.