September 2020
Price: £95 PLUS VAT
Format: DOWNLOADABLE PDF
***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.
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!
Full information and guidance on how to take part will be sent to delegates before the conference
