Guardrails needed for AI growth(6)

Action planned

The work report of the NPC Standing Committee, which was submitted to the session on Saturday, said Chinese lawmakers will intensify research on legislation in emerging sectors such as AI, the digital economy and big data.

Ma Yide, a deputy to the NPC, said China must act fast as the world is changing fast with the development of AI. "Digital technologies are reshaping modes of production, lifestyle and governance, and are accelerating the reconfiguration of global resource allocation and the global competitive landscape," he said.

"Therefore, it's inevitable to strengthen the legal framework to support the development of the digital economy," said Ma, who is also a professor at the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

He praised multiple pieces of legislation that have been introduced over the past few years, such as the Personal Information Protection Law and the Data Security Law, but pointed out that the legislation is not systematic enough.

"Issues in the digital domain, including data, personal information and AI, are interconnected and cannot be addressed in isolation," he stressed, suggesting the country conduct a thorough study in this regard and formulate a special digital legislative work plan.

Systematic legislation will provide comprehensive solutions for problems such as personal data protection, copyright protection, data ownership, AI and the release of public data, he added.