State Secretary Florian Tursky (ÖVP) has announced the establishment of an “AI service point” for this year. This precursor model of the planned authority for artificial intelligence (AI) should above all be a “point of contact for legal certainty” that entrepreneurs can turn to for advice. “For example, it should be made clear what is allowed in terms of AI application and what is not,” he said in Innsbruck.
When asked, the State Secretary for Digitization did not want to specify the further timeline for a fully-fledged AI authority, in which, for example, an “identification requirement for artificial intelligence” would also have to be developed. “That very much depends on EU law, including AI law at EU level,” he said. However, he sees “few red lines” in the ongoing negotiations and therefore believes in rapid implementation.
The “AI law”, approved in the European Parliament in May, which provides European regulations and guidelines for the use of artificial intelligence, was approved in May with a large majority and the draft law was discussed in plenary in June. Negotiations with the council should finally be completed by the end of the year.
On Wednesday, however, Tursky again insisted that the EU AI law “must be decided quickly”. “Austria is exerting pressure here and insists on speed,” said the state secretary. With the establishment of an AI service point and, consequently, with the planned AI competence, one would be able to “counter the public’s fear of AI” in a timely manner and at the same time “create clear rules”, similar to a “traffic regulation”.
workplaces in the communities
As a further building block for the digital future and for “a digitally fit population”, Tursky described “digital skills”, which one would like to improve significantly with the “Digital Austria Pact”. “There will be digital workshops in the communities, funded by the federal government and coordinated by the state of Tyrol,” he stressed. In addition, they want to start Austria-wide funding programs for IT specialists, said the State Secretary for Digitization.
The importance of this offensive was also underlined by the Tyrolean Governor Anton Mattle and the State Council responsible for digitization Mario Gerber (both ÖVP). “The digital skills need to reach even small retailers,” Mattle said, while Gerber spoke of the fact that “digitalization is happening in the here and now.” According to the State Council, the “digital competence offensive” is an important milestone in reducing the “fear of digitization”.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
