The CMA's principles are specifically targeted at potential risks within its competition and consumer protection purview. The regulator is keen to be proactive in scoping out AI technologies with major potential for impact, but emphasises that it will not rush to rein in the cutting edge. Any future rules or principles will need to be "very closely targeted" to specific issues based on real evidence. The CMA is also working with other UK regulators to develop context-specific guidance for AI.
Key takeaways:
- The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has proposed seven principles to ensure consumer protection and healthy competition in the development and use of generative AI foundation models. These principles include accountability, access, diversity, choice, flexibility, fair dealing, and transparency.
- The CMA is drawing on its experience regulating market contestability and feedback from AI stakeholders to draft these pro-innovation principles. The UK government has instructed existing regulators to consider AI impacts on their sectors.
- The CMA is focusing on large-scale AI models that can be adapted to downstream customer applications through a process of fine-tuning. The regulator is keen to be proactive in scoping out the potential impact of these technologies.
- While the CMA is not rushing to regulate these technologies, it is keen to nudge the market towards more positive outcomes. The regulator is looking forward to discussing these principles with a wide range of organizations to improve upon them and see how they might be adopted.