China wants firms to submit security assessments before launching generative AI products

HONG KONG - China’s cyberspace regulator unveiled draft measures on Tuesday for managing generative artificial intelligence (AI) services, saying it wants companies to submit security assessments to the authorities before launching their offerings to the public.

The rules drafted by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) come as several governments are considering how to mitigate the dangers of the emerging technology, which has experienced a boom in investment and consumer popularity in recent months after the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

They also come after a slew of Chinese tech giants, including Baidu, SenseTime and Alibaba,

showed off in recent weeks their new AI models,

which can power applications ranging from chatbots to image generators.

The CAC said that China supports AI innovation and application and encourages use of safe and reliable software, tools and data resources, but content generated by generative AI

had to be in line with the country’s core socialist values.

Providers will be responsible for the legitimacy of data used to train generative AI products, and measures should be taken to prevent discrimination when designing algorithms and training data, it said.

The regulator also said service providers must require users to submit their real identities and related information.

Providers will be fined, have their services suspended, or even face criminal investigations if they fail to comply with the rules.

If inappropriate content is generated by their platforms, the firms must update the technology within three months to stop similar content from being generated again, the CAC said.

The public can comment on the proposals until May 10, and the measures are likely to take effect some time this year, according to the draft rules. REUTERS