The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is planning to employ artificial intelligence (AI) to assist in writing new legislation and revising existing laws, marking the country’s boldest effort to leverage this advanced technology, which has been heavily invested in by the Gulf state.
According to state media, this initiative termed “AI-driven regulation,” surpasses similar efforts globally, according to AI researchers, though detailed information remains limited. Various governments are exploring AI to enhance efficiency, such as in summarizing bills or improving public service delivery, but none have so far aimed to have AI actively propose changes to current laws by analyzing government and legal data.
Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Dubai ruler and UAE Vice-President, expressed through state media that this AI-powered legislative system would revolutionize lawmaking by expediting and refining the process. Last week, ministers approved the establishment of a new cabinet entity, the Regulatory Intelligence Office, to manage this legislative AI initiative.
Copenhagen Business School Professor Rony Medaglia noted that the UAE appears to aim for AI to act as a co-legislator, describing the plan as “very bold.”
With a significant focus on AI, Abu Dhabi launched an investment entity, MGX, supporting endeavors like the $30 billion BlackRock AI-infrastructure fund, and has appointed an AI observer to its board.
The UAE intends to use AI to monitor the impact of laws on the country’s population and economy by setting up an extensive database comprising federal and local laws, along with public sector data, including court judgments and government services. According to Sheikh Mohammad, AI will regularly propose legislative updates, with the expectation of accelerating lawmaking by 70 percent, based on the cabinet meeting’s report.
However, researchers have highlighted potential challenges and risks, ranging from AI’s complexity making it hard for users to understand, to biases from training data and concerns over AI’s ability to interpret laws as humans do.
Vincent Straub, a researcher at Oxford University, warned about the reliability and robustness issues of AI models, which while impressive, are prone to errors and unpredictable outputs. The UAE’s plan is distinctive in its scope, aiming to use AI to foresee necessary legal changes, potentially reducing costs traditionally incurred by hiring law firms for legislative reviews.
Straub further stated that the UAE is moving beyond viewing AI merely as an assistant to one capable of predicting and anticipating legislative needs. Keegan McBride, a lecturer at the Oxford Internet Institute, suggested the autocratic nature of the UAE facilitates rapid governmental digitalization, enabling experimentation that more democratic nations might find challenging.
While various governments employ AI in legislation in smaller capacities, McBride has not observed a comparable plan elsewhere, positioning the UAE at the forefront in terms of ambition. The specific AI system to be utilized by the government remains undecided, with experts suggesting a combination of systems may be necessary.
Nonetheless, researchers emphasized the importance of setting safeguards for AI use and ensuring human oversight. Marina De Vos, a computer scientist at Bath University, cautioned that AI might suggest solutions that, though logical to a machine, could be impractical for real-world human application.
