Artificial Intelligence
Introduction
In May 2023, the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication
published the first draft national Artificial Intelligence (AI) policy document for
Pakistan. The policy addresses a broad spectrum of national targets under four
pillars to achieve AI superiority. The objective of the national AI policy is to place
Pakistan in a competitive position to ensure AI integration while keeping global
trends in mind.
Defining Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence is swiftly becoming a field of technology that is catching the
attention of policymakers, defence-based think tanks, investors, and international
intellectuals. The recent initiatives by various governments around the world have
evidenced the importance of AI integration. To understand the concept behind such
remarkable technology, it is vital to study the definition of AI which, in simple
terms, means the ability to learn and perform certain actions to achieve an
objective.
Considering AI offers efficiency, productivity, and time-saving, it can strengthen
the domains of national security. Ryan Laverick notes that three main dimensions
of military, information, and economic superiority are more likely to be impacted
by AI. In terms of the military, defence strategies are highly influenced by AI since
it can predict threats. For example, Israel’s usage of the Gospel (AI recognition
device) against threats in Gaza.
AI can lead the new industrial revolution since it offers autonomous results from
automation. The economic output it can offer is substantial. In regards to
informational superiority, AI can gather data and process it without human
interaction for intelligence gathering.
From a strategic point of view, AI impacts the national security strategy at three
levels: diagnosis, an understanding of the strategic landscape in terms of the
regional and global; decision-making, which involves the strategic employment of
national power according to the nation’s values and principles; and assessment
which is rethinking and revisiting decisions taken above to plan better.
Artificial Intelligence Strategy of China
In 2017, the Chinese leadership developed the New Generation Artificial
Intelligence Development Plan which is the strategy of integrating AI systems into
society. The document simply states that by 2030, China aims to become the
world leader in AI. The State Council further defined the time frame for achieving
certain goals. For instance, by 2020, they aimed to maintain competition and
develop policies. By 2025, the Chinese leadership believes in achieving a
breakthrough in terms of AI theory and applications.
Lastly, by 2030, they aim to become the pivotal place on earth for AI innovation.
This development plan aims to hit three key areas which are international
competition, economic growth, and social governance. As with the United States’
initiative, China also plans on partnering up with its private community.
Status of Artificial Intelligence in Pakistan
Under the banner of Digitalize Pakistan, the draft national Artificial Intelligence
policy aims to raise awareness among the public on AI, work on developing the
existing workforce, invest in R&D, and develop a regulation framework and
ethical practices. Every country’s national AI strategy has been placed on certain
pillars, the document prioritises four elements: market enablement; AI awareness
and readiness; building a progressive and trusted environment; and
transformation and evolution.
Aneel Salman argues that there is a lack of measurable objectives, clarification,
and ethical considerations. However, what is far more important than the above
finding is the fact that there is an absence of implementing mechanisms. In
simple terms, there is no clear strategy for integrating AI technology into multiple
sections of society.
The Need for an AI Strategy for Pakistan
An AI strategy needs to be constructed, encouraged, and supported to contribute
at the national and international levels. Although the Ministry of Information
Technology and Telecommunication came out with the draft national AI policy for
Pakistan in May 2023, the essence of the strategy is missing. The purpose of
developing an AI policy is to create a competitive posture. However, without a
roadmap, one can not lead the country towards an AI revolution with a policy.
The policy needs guiding principles followed by an ideology that further gives
shape to a strategy for achieving a set goal. If either of the steps is missing, the
jigsaw will crumble. Similarly, Pakistan has historically failed to achieve certain
goals due to various reasons. These include political turmoil, undemocratic
regimes, short-term and elite-based economics, etcetera. However, in the midst
of all this lies the absence of a strategy for achieving certain goals.
By strategy, I mean a roadmap on how to achieve a goal step by step. The
roadmap includes the purpose of initiating a policy followed by how it can be
achieved through specifically mentioned steps constructed by experts in the field.
For instance, the United States’ AI policy, the National Artificial Intelligence
Initiative, is backed by AI Strategy documents that showcase steps on achieving
the pillars.
The reason behind strategizing a policy is to achieve better decision-making and
coordination and to provide direction in integrating AI into all depths of society.
Pakistan has already missed out on the industrial and information revolution.
Missing out on the AI revolution is compromising the economic and national
security front.