Battle of the Books! What is the best policy response to artificial intelligence?

Come join us for a panel chaired by Professor Kimberlee Weatherall with Professor Simon Chesterman, Dr Michael Guihot and Professor Lyria Bennett Moses as they debate the question of whether governments should regulate artificial intelligence and what new regulatory institutions would help to govern the future.

This is a “battle of the books” with themes in Chesterman’s 'We, The Robots? Regulating Artificial Intelligence and the Limits of the Law' pitched against the views in Guihot and Bennett Moses’ 'Artificial Intelligence, Robots and the Law.'

In particular, we will debate the position the books take on:

• How lawyers and regulators should focus on in artificial intelligence – which aspects of AI systems and robots require legal responses
• Regulating technology versus technology-agnostic law reform
• Whether there should be a right to an explanation for adverse decisions
• What kind of new institutions are needed domestically and internationally

'We, the Robots?' Should we regulate artificial intelligence? Can we? From self-driving cars and high-speed trading to algorithmic decision-making, the way we live, work, and play is increasingly dependent on AI systems that operate with diminishing human intervention. These fast, autonomous, and opaque machines offer great benefits — and pose significant risks. This book examines how our laws are dealing with AI, as well as what additional rules and institutions are needed — including the role that AI might play in regulating itself. Drawing on diverse technologies and examples from around the world, the book offers lessons on how to manage risk, draw red lines, and preserve the legitimacy of public authority. Though the prospect of AI pushing beyond the limits of the law may seem remote, these measures are useful now — and will be essential if it ever does.

'Artificial Intelligence, Robots and the Law' is a call to engage with the issues that new developments in these technologies raise. Theoretically rich, the book engages with socio-technical changes caused by developments in artificial intelligence and robotics, while identifying critical ethical and legal issues. It explores the application of current laws to new circumstances in a number of areas, including tort, criminal, and contract law, in addition exploring the need for general law reform and/or technology-specific regulation.