OECD draft Council Recommendation of AI is now final

WPF is pleased to announce that after more than two years of work, the OECD draft Council Recommendation on Artificial intelligence is now final. The draft now becomes the OECD Guidelines on AI. The final meeting took place in Paris, Friday 15 March at OECD headquarters, where the CDEP Committee adopted the Guidelines at approximately 4 pm. 

The Recommendation will be formally adopted at the OECD Council Meeting on 22-23 May 2019. This is a significant moment as the OECD AI Guidelines are the first international, consensus, legal instrument on AI. 

WPF thanks the OECD Secretary for inviting us to represent civil society as an AI Expert Group delegate, and thanks Secretariat Carblanc for inviting us to be a delegate at the CDEP meetings. WPF also thanks CSISAC and the Public Voice for facilitating our attendance at CDEP. 

The AI Expert Group is an extraordinary group of global experts, and WPF is deeply honored to have worked with each of the delegates through this process. Thanks also to the government participants who participated so thoughtfully. 

And finally, WPF expresses our deep gratitude to the OECD — Director Wyckoff, Chair and Vice Minister Min, and Secretariat Carblanc have demonstrated extraordinary leadership and skill in bringing these recommendations to a successful conclusion, as have the entire OECD team working on the project, especially the DEP AI team. 

Only time will reveal if the OECD AI Guidelines achieve the same level of dissemination and impact as the OECD Guidelines on Privacy. But the opportunity now exists. The final iteration of the guidelines as passed today is strong. The guidelines incorporate core values and principles which will work to ensure that fairness, accountability, transparency and other important protections are included as AI is utilized across the globe. The OECD AI Guidelines also incorporate strong human rights protections, privacy, and inclusivity. WPF is honored to have participated in this process, and we will continue our work in this import area. 

Pam Dixon

Executive Director, WPF

Paris, France