If this continues, the new institution may even be liquidated!
The creators of the artificial intelligence center will soon have to... ask the artificial intelligence why the center's work is stalled!
"In April of last year, the Artificial Intelligence Center was opened with great pomp. Officials were generous with promises — the center was supposed to become a driver that would help Latvia join the global technological elite. However, less than a year later, the festive mood has been replaced by political skepticism. In the first half of February, the current work of the center was critically assessed by the Saeima's commission on public administration and local governments, whose head, Oleg Burov, even stated: if there are no concrete results in the coming months, we need to start thinking about liquidating the institution," reported the Latvian TV program Panorāma this evening.
Criticism from deputies was voiced both for the fact that the center has not yet really started working and for the fact that its leader is still effectively the only employee.
"The team is currently in the process of being formed, but I cannot say that I am completely alone, because there are still council members who also provide direction and tasks, competence, experience, contacts, and there is also a secretariat of the Artificial Intelligence Center at the State Agency for Digital Development," said the center's director, Guna Puce, to LTV.
The team of the Artificial Intelligence Center will be small — a total of four employees, including the director, are planned to be hired. So far, no new people have been hired, as the first six months of work are dedicated to developing the legal framework of the institution, which became a condition for creating positions. The center is currently setting up its office in the premises of the State Agency for Digital Development.
Informed sources explain that the center's normal start of operations was also hindered by the change of leadership. Puce has been in the director's chair for only about a month, replacing Natalia Chernetska, who worked for a very short time.
"Such centers are being established in all European countries, and there is no single model for how these centers operate. There is a model where 50% is government and 50% is commercial, as in Sweden, for example. There are different models. I think we set an ambitious goal here to create a mandate for such special regulation, which gives the center perhaps more rights than usual," said Gatis Ozols, Deputy Secretary of State at the Ministry of Smart Administration and Regional Development.
The rector of the Latvian University of Bioeconomy and Technology, Irina Arkhipova, explained: "We know that this institution was created essentially on the basis of three structures or forces: the academic environment, public administration, and commercial entities, meaning private companies, which in itself is somewhat of a challenge.
After all, we know very well that here we encounter both ideas that represent the academic environment and forms defined by state participation, as well as the practical contributions made by our commercial entities. Balancing all these interests is not easy."
So what does this center do? Its goal is to help businesses and the government implement artificial intelligence to work smarter and make the state competitive. At the same time, it is concerned with ensuring that new technologies are proficient in the Latvian language and safe for everyone. Additionally, the center is tasked with assessing the risks associated with artificial intelligence and collaborating with regulatory bodies. One of the main practical ideas of the center is the so-called regulatory environment or "sandbox," where companies could safely test artificial intelligence solutions before they are released to the market.
The center's director, Puce, said: "Currently, already preparing for this call, entrepreneurs are interested, coming with their ideas, asking and asking — would this question be appropriate in the 'sandbox' or as another issue to be solved. So there is interest."
Industry representatives emphasize: such a center is necessary as a state 'host' that would finally introduce a clear methodology and goals for the implementation of technologies. The Latvian Association of Artificial Intelligence believes that the main focus should not be on theoretical discussions but on practical productivity enhancement and support for local enterprises.
