In recent years, the global surge of applications related to artificial intelligence (“AI”), such as ChatGPT, has sparked significant interest. However, concurrently, concerns regarding potential risks such as infringement, manipulation, ethical and moral issues, and impacts on economic and national security have been escalating. Countries like the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Japan are in discussion as to whether governments should intervene in regulation and how to effectively regulate AI.

As for Taiwan, members of the Legislative Yuan, the Taiwan People's Party, and the International Artificial Intelligence and Law Research Foundation have been proposing various versions of draft of AI laws since 2019:

Table 1: Different versions of draft of AI laws in Taiwan

Additionally, in the "Taiwan AI Action Plan 2.0 (2023-2026)" approved by the Executive Yuan in April 2023, ethical and legal aspects of AI have been emphasized. It aims to enhance the regulation of AI, establish an AI product/system evaluation center, and promulgate AI norms and standards for international integration.

Among others, the regulation of AI includes general domains (such as AI basic laws and related guidelines and regulations) and specific domains (such as healthcare, transportation, finance, etc.). The former are overseen by the National Science and Technology Council and the Ministry of Digital Affairs, while the latter are managed by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Transportation and Communication, and the Financial Supervisory Commission. Additionally, the Ministry of Digital Affairs is responsible for the two other key aspects (i.e. establishment of an AI product/system evaluation center and promulgation of AI norms and standards), with relevant ministries offering assistance.

Regarding the Executive Yuan's version of the AI Basic Act draft (referred to as the “Executive Yuan Draft”), Vice Premier Cheng Wen-Tsan announced on August 1, 2023 that due to the rapid development and extensive application areas of AI technology, the originally planned completion date for the AI Basic Act draft in September will be slightly postponed.

However, observing the interviews and statements of the Vice Premier and other ministries, it's evident that the Executive Yuan Draft not only considers foreign legal frameworks from the European Union, Germany, Canada, South Korea, and Japan but also gathers input from experts in academia and industry. In addition, the Executive Yuan initiates inter-ministerial coordination and idea exchange among the National Science and Technology Council and the Ministry of Digital Affairs. The content covers seven main aspects: definitions of legal terms related to AI, privacy protection, data governance, AI risk management, AI ethical principles and norms, industry promotion, and compliance of AI applications.

Comparing these seven aspects with the drafts proposed by Legislative Yuan members and industry (as seen in Table 2), it's apparent that both address AI ethics, industry promotion, privacy and personal data concerns, and risk control. Whether "emphasizing social fairness and safeguarding vulnerable groups" and "establishing a comprehensive AI regulatory sandbox," are included in the Executive Yuan Draft remains to be seen upon the release of the full text.

Table 2:

Features of AI-related-Law Draft Proposed by Legislative Yuan Members and Industry in Taiwan (Source: Ministry of Justice, Report on "Enhancing Digital Infrastructure Across Ministries to Accommodate the Introduction of Artificial Intelligence Technology (e.g. ChatGPT) in the Financial Industry, Expanding Regulatory Approaches to FinTech, and Enhancing Cybersecurity Regulations to Accelerate the Development of FinTech in Taiwan")

(The article is originally in Chinese which can be found here.)