This webinar, organized by AmCham Germany and Covington & Burling LLP on May 10, 2023, delved into the recent legislative initiatives concerning AI in both the EU and the U.S. The discussions primarily revolved around the European AI Act, AI Liability Directive, AI-related bills in the U.S. Congress, guidance provided by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), as well as the Executive Order on AI usage issued by the White House.
Our speakers were:
1. Micaela McMurrough:
Micaela McMurrough is a Partner at Covington & Burling, based in New York. She holds a prominent role as the co-chair of Covington's multi-disciplinary Technology Group, where she oversees various aspects of technology-related legal matters. Additionally, Micaela serves as the co-chair of the Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things (IoT) Group, emphasizing her expertise in these emerging fields.
2. Dr. Moritz Hüsch:
Dr. Moritz Hüsch is a Partner at Covington & Burling, located in Frankfurt. Within the firm, he holds the position of co-chair for both the multi-disciplinary Technology Group and the Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things (IoT) Group
3. Dr. Lars Lensdorf:
Dr. Lars Lensdorf is a Partner at Covington & Burling, based in Frankfurt. His expertise lies in advising clients on a wide range of IT and outsourcing agreements, digitalization, industry 4.0, online procurement platforms, IT-compliance matters (including cybersecurity), IT-related bank regulatory issues, and data protection.
The following topics were covered during the webinar:
In the EU, the timeline for AI legislation included significant milestones such as the European Strategy for Data and White Paper on AI in 2020, the Proposal for an AI Act in April 2021, and several compromise texts and amendments leading to the key committee vote in May 2023. The definition of AI systems varied among the European Commission, European Parliament, and European Council, encompassing elements of software development, autonomy, and generation of outputs.
The scope of the regulations extended to providers, deployers, importers, distributors, and product manufacturers. High-risk AI systems were classified based on their potential harm to health, safety, and fundamental rights, including systems intended to interact with natural persons, emotion recognition systems, biometric categorization systems, and AI systems generating deep fakes. Obligations and requirements were imposed on high-risk AI systems, general-purpose AI systems, and foundational models, with an emphasis on risk management, transparency, human oversight, accuracy, robustness, and cybersecurity.
Enforcement of the AI Act involved penalties for infringements, administrative fines, the establishment of an AI Office, the right to lodge complaints, and the availability of effective judicial or non-judicial remedies. The summary also highlighted the actions of several EU regulators investigating AI-related cases and the proposed AI liability Directive aimed at establishing liability rules for damage caused by AI systems.
In the U.S., while there was no comprehensive federal AI law, there were sector-specific laws and guidance, and attention was given to high-scrutiny use cases such as housing, lending/credit, employment, criminal justice, healthcare, and voting. The U.S. legal landscape relied on existing laws and regulations enforced by active regulators and agencies such as the Department of Justice (DOJ), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The NIST AI Risk Management Framework provided guidelines for addressing risks in the design, development, use, and evaluation of AI products and services, emphasizing characteristics of trustworthy AI.
The webinar also highlighted the joint efforts of U.S. federal agencies to address discrimination and bias in automated systems, the importance of transparency and accountability, and best practices for AI development and evaluation.
The Expert Webinar on current developments in AI legislation in the EU and U.S. offered valuable insights into the regulatory landscape and its impact on businesses. The discussions on the European AI Act, AI Liability Directive, U.S. bills, FTC and NIST guidance, and the White House Executive Order provided attendees with a comprehensive understanding of the evolving AI legislative initiatives.
