The adoption of AI is causing increased business risks for UK firms. Research by VinciWorks revealed that while more than 60% are looking to implement AI technology within their company, 78% are failing to take measures to implement safeguards around it. With the EU AI Act in force, the penalties are severe. Non-compliance with the AI Act can result in a maximum financial penalty of up to EUR 35 million or 7% of worldwide annual turnover, whichever is higher.
Within six months, VinciWorks revealed that only 40% were increasing investment in AI but highlighted that compliance training fell short in most organisations. The situation, if anything, appears to be getting worse, with firms’ growing adoption but an equal growing risk. The survey sample consisted of 343 compliance professionals and was conducted by VinciWorks, a global compliance eLearning provider.
What is happening with AI Compliance in the UK
The challenge in the UK is that the compliance landscape is still vague. The new Labour government dropped the AI bill from the King’s Speech. However, it subsequently announced that a new Digital Information and Smart Data Bill would be introduced, with similar provisions to the Conservative’s DPDI Bill.
However, while the draft notes of that bill make little mention of AI, Starmer did announce that “It will seek to establish the appropriate legislation to place requirements on those working to develop the most powerful artificial intelligence models.”
When this legislation comes into force is unclear. With the majority it has, Labour may be able to push through a lot of legislation, however the process to create it could be slow. It does not appear that it will map against the EU AI Act. For UK companies, however, adhering to EU Law will become increasingly important. Especially with Starmer seeking to build bridges for businesses to the continent, notably with the new UK-Germany treaty. Firms will need an awareness of how the EU AI Act applies if they do business in Europe going forward.
In fact, over 61% of respondents believe that the EU AI Act will impact them, and only 22% don’t. With fines that are more than double the GDPR regulations, this will make boards sit up and take notice, and should certainly be on the risk register for any company considering, or using AI.
How VinciWorks can make a difference
Nick Henderson-Mayo, Director of Learning and Content at VinciWorks, commented, “AI offers significant potential for businesses, but serious risks for companies who don’t take AI compliance seriously. It’s not only the AI Act companies have to be aware of, but misusing AI can result in GDPR penalties, too, along with a myriad of other breaches, from equality to employment law. Businesses must approach AI with a dual focus: innovation and responsibility.”
VinciWorks offers a wide range of AI and AI compliance courses, including one related to the EU AI Act. These courses will help businesses prepare for deploying AI solutions, establish guardrails, and educate staff on the opportunities and challenges that AI offers.
Enterprise Times: What does this mean?
There is a lot of hype around AI. As the VinciWorks survey and others show, companies and employees have chosen to adopt it. Business leaders should be concerned about shadow AI usage and the AI systems they choose to put in place. It is, therefore, important that they mitigate as many of the risks as possible. VinciWorks is one company offering training to do so. Furthermore, it probably has the widest selection of course material to do so.
