AI safety advocates say bill a good ‘first step’ on regulation, but more needed

A pair of artificial intelligence safety advocates say the federal government’s new chatbot legislation is a good first step.

But Wyatt Tessari L’Allié — of Artificial Intelligence Governance and Safety Canada — says the digital safety bill’s effectiveness depends heavily on how the details are worked out.

And B.C. computer science professor Kevin Leyton-Brown says Ottawa will need to go further to address AI’s sycophantic behaviour.

Bill C-34, introduced June 10 in the House of Commons, would regulate the companies behind AI chatbots by imposing on them a duty to act responsibly.