AI governance in India: A call for guardrails, not strict regulations

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) should focus on establishing guardrails rather than strict regulations for Artificial Intelligence (AI) to navigate the evolving technological landscape responsibly.

Indian flag and mobile with OpenAI screen

The TRAI’s recent call to regulate AI comes at a time when policymakers must address rapidly evolving technological innovations. However, attempting strict regulations in such a dynamic and constantly evolving field is impractical.

Instead, the government should foster stakeholder collaboration to develop ethical AI practices. Implementing a single, all-encompassing regulatory framework for AI would be complicated and hinder international collaboration.

A guardrail approach, providing guiding principles and ethical frameworks, allows for flexibility and self-correction within the AI community. Determining universally accepted ethical guidelines for AI is challenging, as perspectives on ethics vary across cultures.

Excessive regulations could discourage entities from entering the AI market and stifle research and experimentation.

The writer suggests a more balanced approach involving industry-led ethical guidelines, transparency, and public-private partnerships to encourage innovation while maintaining ethical standards.

Source: The Hindu Business Online