Trustworthy AI? Not without Consumer Protection!

Classifications and decisions by AI systems - in credit scoring, fraud prevention, mobility, insurance, health, individual pricing, microtargeting in advertising, etc - are momentous.

In 2021, the Commission has presented a proposal for an AI Act to regulate the development and use of trustworthy AI systems. However, the obligations for manufacturers and commercial users of AI apply almost exclusively to high-risk AI systems, which, according to the Commission proposal, hardly include consumer-relevant AI systems. Furthermore, individual rights for consumers affected by AI are missing. Consumer advocates throughout the EU agree that the protection of those affected must be considered. Without the possibility to understand AI systems, trust and transparency cannot be guaranteed and consumers are exposed to opaque black boxes. Providers of AI systems must therefore be obliged to explain the logic and functioning of the AI system to those affected.

In this webinar, we discuss with two renowned experts who have prepared studies on these questions: What changes are needed in the Commission's proposal from a consumer perspective? Are we about to become defenseless guinea pigs of algorithmic prediction tools? How much transparency and consumer rights are needed to ensure consumer sovereignty? Which AI systems should be classified as high-risk so that consumers can also have confidence in the safety of the new technologies?

Opening words: Maria Reiffenstein, BMSGPK

Presentation of the study „Artificial Intelligence: Understandability and Transparency“:

Walter Peissl, Austrian Academy of Sciences (Institute of Technology Assessment - ITA)
 

Presentation of the study „The Artificial Intelligence Act from a Consumer Policy Perspective“:

Prof. Christiane Wendehorst, University of Vienna

Comments:

Ursula Pachl, Deputy Director General of BEUC

Daniela Zimmer, AK Wien

Moderator: Alice Wagner, AK EUROPA

To register, please click here. 

The webinar will take place on 15 March 2022 from 10:30-11:30. It will be held in English. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email. The link to join the webinar will follow prior to the event. You can join the webinar via MS Teams or with your browser. The event will be recorded.

#AI