Sinéad Gibney (Dublin Rathdown, Social Democrats)
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I wish the Cathaoirleach the best of luck in his role. I thank our guests for coming before the committee. All members bring a wealth of experience to the committee. I am very much looking forward to working with them.

Like others, I am excited. However, that excitement is very much tempered by my concerns about AI. I am coming at this from a background in technology and in rights and equality. One of the key concerns I have is that too much power for the implementation of AI is located with big tech. For AI, we need the hardware, the data and the expertise. No government in the world has all of these. They are centred on big tech. This gives me additional concerns that, as with other policy areas, the Government, unfortunately, is a little too focused on industry and the economy and not enough on all-of-society approaches.

Regulation must be front and centre. Law and policy are simply not yet in place to allow us to deal with what is already here, never mind what is coming. If we focus on a strong regulatory environment at domestic and EU level, we will foster the growth of sustainable AI. I do not want AI to be developed or innovated in way that will have a harmful effect on society. A balance in this regard has to be absolutely front and centre.

Many of my major concerns, which were mentioned by previous speakers, relate to the displacement of labour, rights and discrimination, climate, democracy, creativity and education. The scams mentioned by Senator Harmon constitute an emerging issue about which I have major concerns.

To finish on a positive note, I truly believe that the innovation AI will bring to our society can have a positive impact if we are forthright in the development of positive regulation.