Harlow and District Chamber of Commerce

Developing artificial intelligence technologies in the UK

***Full-scale policy conference taking place online***

This conference focuses on AI technologies in the UK, bringing together sector leaders and other key stakeholders with policymakers in parliament, and across government and regulation.

Sana Khareghani Head, Office for Artificial Intelligence

Professor Dame Wendy Hall Regius Professor of Computer Science, University of Southampton; AI Skills Champion for the UK and Chair, Ada Lovelace Institute

James Wise Partner, Balderton Capital

The discussion at a glance:

Latest developments and priorities going forward for:

• supporting the UK’s commercial AI sector
• putting in place data standards and infrastructure
• addressing key ethical issues

We also expect discussion on the contribution of AI to the work going on to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, and what can be learned and taken forward from the response of the sector in areas such as responsiveness, agility and collaboration.

Relevant developments at a glance:

• policy - the AI Sector Deal and the government’s National Data Strategy
• guidance - from the OAI, GDS, IOC, and Adam Turing Institute on using AI in the public sector, explaining decisions made using AI to those affected, and an organisational AI auditing framework
• the Open Data Institute’s three pilot data trust projects last year
• CDEI analysis:
  
  
  • priority areas for potential benefit from AI - including social media moderation, fraud detection, clinical diagnosis support, and the finance and insurance sectors
  • risks - including algorithmic bias, lack of clarity and understanding over algorithmic decision making, and lack of consent around data collection and use
  • uptake drivers - including increasing public trust through greater transparency around AI and data use, and improving the quality and availability of data
• skills and the talent pipeline:
  
  
  • the Centres for Doctoral Training programme, new places on AI and data science conversion courses, and government proposals for immigration policy
  • AI Skills in the UK -  a recent Microsoft report with international comparisons finding the UK falling behind in AI maturity, skills and adoption levels, leading to higher failure rate in AI projects

The discussion in detail:

Data protection, transparency, trust and tackling bias

• personal data and privacy - mitigating potential risks associated with AI across the public and private sectors
• data sets - increasing their availability for use in AI development:
  
  
  • personal data such as healthcare records - as well as systems data
  • balancing openness with ethical and privacy considerations
• transparency - in AI-driven decision-making, and how it can best be achieved
• bias in algorithmic decision-making - and how to address its replication when data sets are re-used, particularly in perpetuating racial stereotypes
• the data trust concept - how it might be rolled out across further use cases and sectors of the economy

Infrastructure for AI

• putting in place the data infrastructure necessary to support the development of AI technologies in the UK
• securing the availability of large, high-quality and consistently-formatted data sets

R&D in the UK

• funding for research and development in the UK - including from public sector to support research in UK universities and other institutions
• collaboration between universities and commercial organisations - the way forward for its development
• university start-up incubator programmes - their future role
• commercialising academic research in AI - and developing business models

Skills, education and the talent pipeline

• progress - looking at the Centres for Doctoral Training programme, as well as the delivery of AI Masters courses
• overseas and UK talent - recruitment and retention, including the potential implications of the Government’s proposals for the future immigration system
• diversity - key priorities for the UK’s tech sector

Key considerations for public-sector bodies

• transparency
• accountability
• recognising the present limitations of the technology

Developing the UK’s commercial AI sector

• start-ups and scale-ups - driving investment, and what more is needed from policymakers and public sector bodies, as well as from investors and venture capital firms
• funding sources - increasing their availability and diversity, and better connecting them with AI ventures
• priorities for AI start-ups themselves - in developing their attractiveness and viability as investment prospects
• business support - increasing the availability of resources for UK AI ventures

COVID-19

• What can be learned for the development of the sector from the role of AI in the response, including in: contact-tracing and developing mobile applications, predictive computer models and developing responses both in the UK and internationally

The agenda:

• Developing the UK’s AI sector - progress so far and next steps for policy
• Addressing key ethical concerns around artificial intelligence:
  
  
  • Auditing the handling and use of data in AI development and assessing the key implications for privacy and data protection
  • Latest thinking on AI opportunities and risks
  • Key legal and regulatory implications of the widespread uptake of AI technologies
  • Increasing opportunities for under-represented groups in the AI and digital workforce
• Research and development in AI technologies in the UK - funding, collaboration between universities and industry, and the talent pipeline
• Funding and investment in AI start-ups and scale-ups in the UK
• Priorities for developing the UK’s commercial AI sector

Policy officials attending:

Our forums are known for attracting strong interest from policymakers and stakeholders.

Interest from government is particularly strong for this conference. Places have been reserved by parliamentary pass-holders from the House of Commons, and officials from BEIS; the Cabinet Office; HM Treasury; the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation; DCMS; CIDD; the Competition and Markets Authority; the Department for International Trade; the Department for Transport; the Department of Health and Social Care; DFID; the DWP; the Food Standards Agency; GCHQ; HMCTS; HM Revenue & Customs; the Home Office; the Intellectual Property Office; the Maritime and Coastguard Agency; Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency; MHCLG; the Ministry of Defence; the Ministry of Justice; the National Audit Office; the National Crime Agency; the National Cyber Security Centre; Ofcom; the Office for Life Sciences; The Scottish Government; the UK Space Agency and the Welsh Government.

This is a full-scale conference taking place online***

• full, four-hour programme including comfort breaks - you’ll also get a full recording to refer back to
• information-rich discussion involving key policymakers and stakeholders
• conference materials provided in advance, including speaker biographies
• speakers presenting via webcam, accompanied by slides if they wish, using the Cisco WebEx professional online conference platform (easy for delegates - we’ll provide full details)
• opportunities for live delegate questions and comments with all speakers
• a recording of the addresses, all slides cleared by speakers, and further materials, is made available to all delegates afterwards as a permanent record of the proceedings
• delegates are able to add their own written comments and articles following the conference, to be distributed to all attendees and more widely
• networking too - there will be opportunities for delegates to e-meet and interact - we’ll tell you how!

Event Booking...

https://www.westminsterforumprojects.co.uk/book/Developing-artificial-intelligence-20

The event will start on: Thu 10 Sep 2020 - 9:00am

Venue: Online