NEW DELHI: Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw defended issuing an advisory to all AI developers such as Google, Microsoft, and Adobe, and said the companies should be responsible before developing any AI platform.
The minister emphasised that these e-platforms should be thoroughly tested and trained to ensure the safety of citizens and the democratic process in the country. His comments came after Indian and global founders criticised the advisory, claiming it would stifle innovation in the country.
The minister clarified that the government’s message is not a regulatory framework but rather an advisory urging testing your model before launch. “Before launching any such platform, companies should ensure it is thoroughly tested and trained. This is essential for citizen safety and the democratic process in the country. Therefore, we have issued this advisory to the intermediaries. Any model, if developed, should be rigorously tested before launch,” said Vaishnaw.
The government issued an advisory after the minister of State Electronics and Information Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, said Google’s AI chatbot Gemini is violating Rule 3(1)(b) of Intermediary Rules (IT Rules) 2021 because its answer to the question is that Modi is a fascist.
The advisory mentioned that AI developers such as Google, Microsoft, and Adobe must get explicit permission from the government for all their under-tested or unreliable artificial intelligence (AI) models before releasing them to users in India. The advisory also covers companies hosting platforms that utilize unreliable or underdeveloped AI. These companies, if they wish to create a “sandbox” environment for testing purposes, must acquire government permission and clearly label the platform as “under testing.”
Furthermore, MeitY expressed concerns about potential biases in AI models and platforms impacting the integrity of India’s electoral process. All relevant platforms were instructed to submit a report outlining their actions and current status to MeitY within 15 days of the advisory.
Today, Rajeev Chandrasekhar clarified that the advisory does not apply to start-ups.