Bridging the gap between tech and policy innovation in Europe with Open Loop

Open Loop enables collaboration between lawmakers and tech firms to test the waters regarding regulating AI and related data.

COPENHAGEN, DENMARK | DECEMBER | 2022

2021.AI are a proud member of Open Loop – a global experimental governance program that bridges the gap between tech and policy innovation in the EU. The program invites governments, tech companies, academia, and civil society to co-create and test new governance frameworks through policy prototyping programs and to support the evaluation of existing legal frameworks through regulatory sandbox exercises.

In the realm of emerging tech, lawmaker understanding often lags behind technological advances. (In extreme cases, legislation may even be outdated by the time a bill passes into law.) To craft legislation that meets human and business needs, lawmakers must understand the current development state of AI in the field.

Accordingly, Open Loop has sought input from 50 industry-leading AI companies, including 2021.AI, to foster collaboration between innovators and regulators. As experts in AI Governance solutions for the private and public sectors, 2021.AI is uniquely qualified to help the EU AI Act experience a smooth transition from principle into practice.

2021.AI’s participation in Open Loop extends to three phases: an inception phase, a deep dive phase, and a co-creation phase. These phases comprise questionnaires, workshops, online forums, policy jams, and testing sessions to critique key articles of the EU AI Act.

Moreover, at online events like the Open Loop Forum, executives from 2021.AI have shared their observations on pervasive behaviors, ambitions, and problems throughout the industry. For example, when discussing the level of technical skill that a user should have when interpreting the output of an AI system, Rasmus Hauch (Chief Technology Officer at 2021.AI) said:

“I think the interpretation can be done on multiple levels and for multiple stakeholders. If the system is built in clever ways, all levels of skills can be met. If you buy an airplane ticket today, you don’t need to check the certification documents for the engines in the airplane because you know that the airline is certified.“

Continuous feedback equips Open Loop to bridge the gap between technological reality and legislative understanding.

About Open Loop

Supported by Meta (previously Facebook), Open Loop is a policy prototyping program that aims to test and clarify key aspects of the EU’s proposed AI Act. Open Loop operates in collaboration with the European consulting firms Considerati and Hyve Innovate, and the program is partnered with government agencies in Malta and Estonia. To learn more, please visit openloop.org

You might also like…