Laura Harmon (Labour)
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I wish the Chair well in his role and I look forward to working with everybody on this committee. I also welcome the witnesses.

This is a very exciting committee to be a part of. Every aspect of humanity is going to be affected by artificial intelligence in the future. It is going to affect how our societies operate and function in everything, from our education and health systems to business, government and elections and from the media and creativity to policing. The question of how AI develops will raise issues regarding human rights and workers' rights in terms of how workers are treated and how work may or may not be replaced by AI. There is going to be a real need for education to discern what is real and not real and with regard to creative thinking, particularly in terms of the media and social media we consume as well as the false information that is out there. Our society has already seen a rise in cyber-scams, which are becoming even more advanced with AI. That issue also needs to be addressed as part of this.

We know that generative AI technologies consume a lot of energy but AI can potentially also make a valuable contribution to how we address climate chaos and the challenges facing humanity. AI will play a part in that. We have to work with AI to ensure it is contributing to the public good and is being regulated. Because it is developing at such a fast pace, we must ensure regulation stays on top of that. That will be the role of governments across the world, and certainly here in Ireland, going forward. That is why this committee is so important. I am delighted to be a part of it and I look forward to working with everyone.