The Tech Brief

 In the past few days, generative Artificial Intelligence systems like ChatGPT and Stability AI have caught great attention. In the first part of the podcast, we discuss to what extent these language models are actually new, and the potential societal transformations they can drive with Joanna Bryson, Professor of Ethics and Technology at The Hertie School of Governance. In the episode's second part, we focus on the societal risks and possible regulatory approaches with Daniel Leufer, a Senior Policy Analyst at Access Now.

A draft bill expected to be introduced to parliament in the coming months is set to give legal backing to planned competition reforms published by the UK government last year, a move which could have significant implications for tech regulation. Andrea Coscelli, former chief executive of the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority, joins this week’s podcast to discuss the changes and how they compare to similar efforts within the EU.

Fundamental differences between the EU and the US remain on Open RAN. We pick up this debate, in particular looking at the security aspect, with John Baker, Senior Vice President for Business Development at Mavenir, and Hosuk Lee-Makiyama, Director of the European Centre for International Political Economy.

The Digital Markets Act targets the largest technology companies in the world, which are also the main developers of Artificial Intelligence. For professor Philipp Hacker and other academics of the European New School of Digital Studies, the DMA might become actual EU rulebook on AI. We discuss with Hacker his argument and how the DMA might interact with the upcoming AI Act.

As the European Commission laying the preparatory work to enforce the Digital Markets Act, we took a look at the main challenges and potential pitfalls in the implementation process, paying particular attention to the switching tools, with Alexandre de Streel, academic director at CERRE, and Amelia Fletcher, professor of competition policy at the University of East Anglia and CERRE’s research fellow.

AI audits are a nascent field due to rapidly developing with the adoption of the EU’s AI Act. But what are the conditions for a robust auditing regime? And what are the risks of so-called ‘audit-washing’? We discuss this and more with Julia Tréhu, Program Manager and Fellow at the German Marshal Fund, and Ellen Goodman, distinguished professor at Rutgers Law School.

The Data Act has the grand ambition of creating a market for non-personal data in Europe. We discussed with Heiko Richter, a researcher from the Max Planck Institute, the current state of the policy discussions on the new data law and the pitfalls that need to be avoided.

The metaverse poses all kinds of regulatory challenges. EURACTIV discussed with Friedrich Wenzel Bulst and Sophie De Vinck, two official from the European Commission’s competition department, how they expect the metaverse to affect current enforcement trends and if the new EU’s rulebook for Big Tech, the Digital Markets Act, will be fit for the task.

Last week, the United States was called to the ballots for its mid-term elections, resulting in a more divided Congress. We discuss what this all means for Europe’s digital policy, public subsidies and the next Trade and Technology Council meeting with Tyson Barker, the head of the Technology and Global Affairs Program at the German Council of Foreign Relations.

The EU’s proposal for a Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) is the first horizontal regulation to introduce security requirements for connected devices and related services. However, the draft regulation has promoted a debate about the type of products that should be covered. We discussed the critical aspects of the proposal with Grégoire Gaonach, a cybersecurity engineer and digital policy consultant at Political Intelligence.