By Shanker Man Singh
Nepal ranks 139 out of 181 countries in the “AI Readiness Index” of 2022; which shows the urgent need to address the gap in digital skills and education. As there is a need for sufficient trained manpower in this field, it is necessary to build laws, rules, regulations, procedures, policies, guidelines, etc. related to this. As per our tradition, Nepal should prepare for this change immediately. However, in Nepal, it is believed that artificial intelligence (AI) is used in various fields, such as healthcare, agriculture, education, and business. Organizations in Nepal are using AI for tasks such as data analysis, language processing, and automation to improve efficiency and decision-making.
In addition, the Constitution of Nepal includes the right to privacy as a fundamental right. Moreover, the Privacy Act 2019 and its regulations attempt to address minimum rights regarding data as a citizen’s right.
The law prohibits obtaining data without a person’s permission, such as health checks, assets, family affairs, biometric details, fingerprints, political affiliations, and business transactions. However, these laws do not deal with ethical considerations for the use of artificial intelligence in Nepal. Nor does Nepal have adequate legal provisions to address those guilty of misuse of technology. Cyberlaw might be the case in reference, but how far it reaches is an issue to be discussed and debated.
The government needs to amend existing laws and make new ones to promote the use of AI here. AI is based on “algorithms” driven by data.
All the data provided in it plays an important role in creating an analysis of the person. If it is not regulated in time, big companies may buy data for their own benefit and cause personal and institutional damage to people in the future.
AI can create biases, which lead to discrimination and social consequences. Therefore, while promoting the use of AI in Nepal, it is necessary to be prepared to avoid such consequences and to raise general awareness about AI ethics.
At first glance, the five principles make it difficult to redirect technological change, but it is possible. Governments everywhere—especially in the U.S. and other countries where the technology is actively developing—should take the following five steps to help keep AI development on a human-supplementing, rather than human-displacing, path: Reform business models: Major developers of AI easily harvest consumer data without compensation, and their reliance on digital advertising encourages them to capture consumers’ attention by any means necessary.
Governments need to establish clear ownership rights for all consumers over their data and tax digital advertising. Enabling a more diverse range of business models—or even more competition—is essential if AI is to be helpful for all people.
Tax system: The tax code in the United States and many other countries place a heavier burden on firms that hire labor than on those that invest in algorithms to automate the work. To shift incentives to human-complementary technological choices, policymakers should aim to create a more symmetrical tax structure, equalizing marginal tax rates for hired (and trained) labor and investment in equipment and software.
Labor-related: As workers will be profoundly affected by AI, they must have a voice and participate in its development. Government policy should restrict the deployment of untested (or insufficiently tested) AI for applications that may put workers at risk, for example in high-responsibility personnel decision-making tasks (including hiring and termination) or workplace monitoring and surveillance.
Funding for more human-complementary research: Research and development in human-complementary AI technologies needs massive support.
Governments should promote competition and investment in technologies that combine AI tools with human expertise to improve work in critical social sectors.
Once sufficient progress is made, the government can encourage further investment by advising on whether the purported human-augmenting technology is suitable for adoption in publicly funded education and healthcare programs.
AI expertise within government: AI will touch every area of government investment, regulation, and oversight. Developing an advisory AI division within the government can help agencies and regulators support more timely, effective decision-making.
Potential Macroeconomic Impact: AI could increase global GDP over the next five years, although not by as much as enthusiasts claim. It may also boost GDP growth modestly in the medium term. However, in our current projection, the first-order effect is likely to increase inequality in industrialized countries. Middle-income countries and even very low-income countries have much to fear from the existing path. New capital-intensive technology will soon be everywhere.
There is no guarantee that, on its current trajectory, AI will create more jobs than it will destroy. If we can redirect AI down a more human-complementary path, using it to address pressing social problems, all parts of the planet can benefit. However, if the automatic approach persists, it will be more difficult to achieve shared prosperity. Financial institutions are forecast to double their spending on AI by 2027 Artificial Intelligence tools and the people who use them are a new necessity for the world’s financial institutions and central banks.
The financial services industry could be among the biggest beneficiaries of technology, which can enable them to protect assets and predict markets. Or if AI encourages theft, fraud, cybercrime, or a financial crisis that investors can’t imagine today, the sector could lose the most. Economists have developed a framework for thinking about the effects of AI—which simulates human intelligence in machines—and more generally, the effects of technological change, automation, and robots on inequality. In this context, it has been highlighted four main channels affecting inequality: Technological change that increases the productivity of skilled labor relative to unskilled workers.
Reductions in the cost of capital that mainly complement skilled labor increased the ability of machines to completely replace workers for specific tasks and the concentration of market power in a few firms as a result of technology grew.
Given the general-purpose nature of AI and the complexities involved in operating it, a single governance regime is insufficient to address the various sources of AI risk.
Regulating AI
Undoubtedly, there is a dire need to ensure a conducive ecosystem for the development of AI, which ultimately, scales the overall social development and inclusive agenda. Recent Trends in AI have grown exponentially worldwide bringing about the fourth industrial revolution and has attracted worldwide attention.
With the concept of ‘Digital Nepal for good governance, development and prosperity’, the government has approved the ‘Digital Nepal Framework 2019’ program with a plan to make Nepal a digital state within five years.
It is slowly moving towards developing programs using AI. The obvious aspects are the adaptive capabilities of AI that enable personalized learning experiences for students to enhance their engagement and knowledge retention.
In recent times, the habit of innovation has increased in Nepal, so if we compare it with the outside world, the use of AI is also increasing in Nepal. This means that AI, as it is popularly abbreviated, is becoming a part of life in Nepal as well.
The term AI was first coined by John McCarthy in 1956 during his research. AI is a human-like intelligent machine.
AI is supposed to mimic human skills and reasoning abilities including logic, recognition and natural language. In a broad sense, AI is described as the study area of computer science.
According to the report of iStart.io, the number of active iPhone users in Nepal was about 872,700 a few years ago. It is estimated that the number should have increased by five times Nepal is on the brink of a transformation that could transform its economic and social future. Before the end of this decade, more Nepalis will use AI every day than any other country in the world.
What’s more, people in advanced economies will be surprised by the ways countries use AI. Nepal is at the starting point of a technological revolution that could change the course of its social and economic future, and this revolution may have lessons for the rest of the world. Internet access is increasing, and with the availability of affordable data plans, more and more people are online.
This has created a large user base for AI applications and services. But where Nepal surpasses all others is in its digital public infrastructure. Citizens with various disabilities in India and Nepal are also benefiting from various mobile apps.
They can get knowledge about a particular topic in their own language as Google has introduced live transcribe options in more than 70 languages including Nepali and Hindi. Using AI, we can scan the book, analyze and understand the texts simply and then we can press the command to create questions based on the specific text.
It will be beneficial for the students in many ways. Hence, both Nepal and India cannot ignore AI. AI in Nepal and India. There is a lack of policy intervention in AI in Nepal, but the use of AI-based technology in the banking and health sectors shows that Nepal is not far behind in technological development. A new restaurant in Kathmandu has five robot waiters under the slogan “Where food meets technology”. Designed and manufactured by Palia Prabhidi, a Nepali company founded by young engineers specializing in robotics and AI.
Interestingly, Naulo is South Asia’s first digitized robotic restaurant. On the whole, AI can contribute to the development of Nepal and it is necessary to do homework for that. Later on, by taking the 2019 Act and saying the right to privacy, Nepal should not fall behind other countries, all should be aware of this.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect People’s Review’s editorial stance.
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