UK publishes roadmap for 'AI assurance industry'

The UK government's Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation (CDEI) has published a "roadmap" designed to create an AI assurance industry to support the introduction of automated analysis, decision making, and processes. The move is one of several government initiatives planned to help shape local development and use of AI – an industry that attracted £2.5bn investment in 2019 – but it raises as many questions as it answers. Part of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS), the CDEI said by "verifying that AI systems are effective, trustworthy and compliant, AI assurance services will drive a step-change in adoption, enabling the UK to realise the full potential of AI and develop a competitive edge." Launching the move, DCMS minister Chris Philp said: "The roadmap sets out the steps needed to grow a mature, world-class AI assurance industry. AI assurance services will become a key part of the toolkit available to ensure effective, pro-innovation governance of AI." How that governance will take shape is, as yet, a bit fuzzy while the industry waits on proposals for AI legislation in the forthcoming White Paper on governance and regulation.