Report: China Finalizes Governing Rules for Generative AI Services

On Thursday, Chinese regulators said they had finalized new rules governing generative AI. According to a report by CNBC, the Cyberspace Administration of China said that it had worked with other regulatory bodies to draft key new governing rules for generative AI services.

The new regulation is expected to go into effect on August 15th and is one of the first major steps toward regulating emerging technology. For most, ChatGPT is the most well-known form of generative AI, and this law will be the first major test between a regulatory framework and innovation.

What makes China an interesting case study is its approach to internet censorship and data privacy rights for citizens. Though companies such as Alibaba and others have jumped on the chatbot wave creating LLMs similar to ChatGPT, they are under tighter control compared to their OpenAI counterpart.

This new regulation is the latest step in China’s AI regulations. Back in November, Beijing required that all deepfake images and videos have watermarks inserted into them. As deepfake technology, and overall AI technology, continues to rapidly advance, risks and fears of what AI can do have grown globally.

So what are the new rules? According to the Cyberspace Administration of China, generative AI services must obtain a license to operate. With that, if the service finds what the CAC deems as “illegal” content, it must take measures in removing the content or prevent it from generating.

But that’s not all. Then it must check the algorithm and report back to the relevant authority to ensure illegal content is no longer being generated. Providers of AI services must also conduct security assessments on their products and take steps in securing user information.

Finally, generative AI services must adhere to the “core values of socialism” according to the CAC. So far, these rules will only apply to services being offered to the public, and not research institutions. This likely signals that Beijing is attempting to balance risks and innovation due to the potential AI offers.

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