Artificial Intelligence: the key French priority

The French report on artificial intelligence (AI) was finally released this Thursday, 29 March 2018. The mission who issued the report (also named “Villani’s” report after its leader, Cédric Villani, French Member of the National Assembly, Fields medal laureate 2010), was commissioned by the French Government in September 2017 to consider the French strategy for artificial intelligence (AI). The experts commission included the research director of INRIA (the French National Institute for computer science and applied mathematics), members of the Conseil National du Numérique (National Digital Council), a member of the National French Defence Procurement Agency and MP Villani.

Following the publication of the final report, the French President, Emmanuel Macron, commented that “talent, research, funding and data” are the key elements to making France one of the world leaders in AI. Macron also announced that €1.5bn will be invested by the Government in AI during his five-year term. The Government is seeking to double the number of higher education students in strategic fields: mathematics, engineering, artificial intelligence, data science. Macron also expressed his wishes to focus on the openness and accessibility of data, particularly in the health and mobility sector through anonymization mechanisms.

The report focuses on (A) six main topics which are: (1) data, (2) research, (3) impacts on labor and employment, (4) ecology, (5) ethics, and (6) diversity and inclusivity of AI, and (B) four key sectors which are: (1) health, (2) transportation, (3) environment and (4) defense.

The Villani task force has raised issues relating to AI and brought several proposals, and recommendations in order to better grasp this notion. According to the report, the primary objective for France is to become as competitive and attractive as the big American economic actors working on AI. For this purpose, the report notably proposes to expand the research area in order to polish up France’s image and mitigate the “brain drain” issue through the creation of interdisciplinary institutions specialized in AI.

Still according to the report, a key prerequisite to support the AI transition, is the implementation of pooled resources at both national and European levels and to put the data issue in the forefront of preoccupations.

Another great concern arisen by the report is to arrive at environmentally friendly solutions concerning AI, given that by 2040 the storage space needed at global level will exceed the available silicon production.

An emphasis is also placed on the paramount importance of the parity between men and women likely to work in the AI field, because the lack of parity could lead algorithms to reproduce unconscious cognitive biases. The report globally focuses on ethical issues related to the development of AI and algorithms in general and the consequences they may have on the daily lives of everyone. Given the importance of this issue, the task force suggests the creation of an AI Ethical Committee able to organize the public debate on this specific point and invites the IA economic actors to take an approach “Ethic by design”.