Google and Openai were given to accommodate three weeks of government consultations on AI and copyright after refusing to appear in the recent evidence session.
In a letter sent to the two companies, Chi Onwurah, chairman of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, set up four questions to answer the tech giants and requested that representatives be sent to future public sessions on the issue.
The proposals mentioned in government consultations are already filled with backlash from the UK’s creative sector.
Last month, the Scientific Committee held a joint session with the Culture, Media and Sports Committee to examine the proposals. Representatives from Google and Openai were invited to attend, but government consultations were rejected, citing that they were still alive.
Onwurah is currently following up with both companies requesting details of their responses to the consultation by April 2nd.
She makes clear her position on the government’s proposal to amend copyright laws to enable tech companies to train AI models on copyrighted materials.
To the policy directors of both companies, the committee chair set four questions for the companies.
The first was whether the responses to the consultation included suggestions for using technology to provide a “completely transparent” rights environment.
She also asked whether Google and Openai intend to shed light on their position by publishing their responses to the consultation, saying they would like to see their submissions, whether the committee makes it public or not.
Following last month’s session, two committees set recommendations for the Secretary of State for science, innovation and technology.
These are: The government should implement “practical measures” regarding the transparency of AI training data. Whatever your approach to copyright law or what your government prefers, advances should not be made without a technological solution that works and is practical and accessible to everyone.
The committee also recommended that the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Technology publish a full impact assessment of each option proposed in consultations, and that “robust mechanisms” would be required to enforce compliance, enforcement and relief.
Onwurah said: “The UK is home to both the rapidly growing AI sector that can drive economic growth and the world’s leading creative industries and artists who are rightly concerned about maintaining intellectual property rights. Government AI and copyright consultations are the key next step in finding a fair balance between the interests of AI developers and rights holders.
“The government’s preference choices rely on the right technology solutions being developed at speed. It’s important to understand whether Google and Openai are AI leaders and believe they can meet government ambitions.”
