EU's Right to Explanation: A Harmful Restriction on Artificial Intelligence

Last September, a U.K. House of Commons committee concluded that it is too soon to regulate artificial intelligence (AI). Its recommendation comes too late: The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which comes into force next year, includes a right to obtain an explanation of decisions made by algorithms and a right to opt-out of some algorithmic decisions altogether. These regulations do little to help consumers, but they will slow down the development and use of AI in Europe by holding developers to a standard that is often unnecessary and infeasible. Although the GDPR is designed to address the risk of companies making unfair decisions about individuals using algorithms, its rules will provide little benefit because other laws already protect their interests in this regard. For example, when it comes to a decision to fire a worker, laws already exist to require an explanation, even if AI is not used.