Challenge statement
Challenge type: If you are working on multiple challenges, please indicate if this is your "big bet" or "exploratory" challenge.
Please note: we ask you to only submit a maximum of 3 challenges - 1x Big Bet, 2x Exploratory. Each challenge must be submitted individually.
BIG BET
Challenge statement: What is your challenge? (Please answer in specific terms: "Our challenge is that...”.)
Our challenge is to promote artificial intelligence systems as a driver for sustainable development in Mexico, by identifying leverage points to mitigate risks and negative impacts, and advance opportunities throughout the whole AI’s cycle (development, use).
Background: What is the history of your challenge? What is causing or driving it? Who is involved? How does the current situation look like? What undesired effects does it produce?
As the development and adoption of AI accelerates, the need for collective collaboration across sectors to respond to current and future risks is crucial. AI systems are changing various domains of our lives—the way we communicate, work, learn, and more—and it is not an understatement to say that such systems will transform our lives and societies in decades to come.
The rapid and wide adoption of readily accessible tools such as ChatGPT has showcased how generative AI tools can quickly impact people’s daily activities and interactions with information and knowledge. The shifts we have witnessed in the past months are only one more demonstration of the need for and importance of countries to act and channel AI’s benefits in a just and responsible manner and protect their societies.
AI systems are embedded by power imbalances on multiple levels, for instance:
- The design and development of the dominant technologies fall into the hands of few companies from the Global North. They are the ones shaping the dominant narratives and world views around technology and societies’ relationship with it around the world—mostly reinforcing the same biases that already exist in our societies.
- Minorities and vulnerable communities, who have historically been misrepresented in the data feeding algorithms, are negatively affected by AI informed—and biased—decisions.
- The governments, companies and individuals who are better equipped to incorporate AI into their processes will reap the exponential benefits from these technologies, while those who do not have access to the necessary means—capacities, digital technologies, etc.—will lag far behind. The gap will exponentially widen and deepen.
There are, however, ongoing efforts to steer AI systems away from benefiting a few, and toward common benefits for our societies.
On a more grassroots level, there are initiatives stemming principally from civil society and academia, to counter such power imbalances through deep reflection, knowledge production, and coordinated action and interventions. For example, the movement to decolonize AI seeks to move away from the dominant narratives and “capture a more realistic view of the world that includes concerns that many in the Global South consider relevant and important” [1]. The NGO Derechos Digitales in collaboration with Red fr seek to inform the development of AI with feminist theories by asking "Is it possible to develop AI without reproducing logics of oppression?". By doing so, they want Latin America to participate in the knowledge production of AI [2].
Globally, multilateral efforts aim to “build global capacity for the development and use of AI in a manner that is trustworthy, human rights-based, safe and sustainable, and promotes peace” [3]. The soon to be formed multi-stakeholder Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence will undertake analysis and advance recommendations for the international governance of AI.
[1] https://hai.stanford.edu/news/movement-decolonize-ai-centering-dignity-over-dependency
[2] https://www.derechosdigitales.org/fair-2023/
[3] https://www.un.org/techenvoy/content/artificial-intelligence
Quantitative evidence: What (official) data sources do you have on this challenge that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge? You can add text, a link, or a picture.
Qualitative evidence: What weak signals have you recently spotted that characterizes its urgency? Please provide qualitative information that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge. You can add text, a link, or a picture.
SIGNALS AROUND ADOPTION (FACTUAL AND INTENDED) AND DEVELOPMENT OF AI:
- In the last year, advanced AI models like ChatGPT have seen rapid adoption (ChatGPT reached its first million users in 5 days, Facebook took 10 months) and their capabilities have been increasing exponentially.
- Facial recognition cameras, drones to pursue criminals and databases with artificial intelligence. A pre-candidate for Mexico’s 2024 presidential election presents a security plan anchored in technology and AI, raising concerns around privacy and data protection. https://elpais.com/mexico/2023-07-10/marcelo-ebrard-presenta-su-propuesta-de-seguridad-vamos-a-disfrutar-el-mexico-mas-seguro-de-la-historia.html
- In recent years, Latin American and Caribbean workers have been identified as significant crowd work contributors (to label data for AI systems). Latin American women make up a sizable portion of these workers. Crowd work provides them with a path towards financial independence while balancing traditional caregiver responsibilities. This demonstrates the importance of tacking AI’s opportunities and risks with a gender perspective. https://drive.google.com/file/d/17IJM9jzZinsJOes6nAqtoUW4PciTUxv8/view.
ACTORS CALLING FOR ACTION, REGULATION AND POLICIES TO GUARANTEE EQUITABLE ACCESS AND USE OF AI:
- Generative AI’s adoption is growing faster than its regulation, and Mexico is no exception. An investigation by the Belisario Domínguez Institute raises the need to legislate to regulate the development, use and risk mitigation of AI. The author of the study points out that "this legislation has to be transversal considering that AI is rapidly penetrating all activities." https://www.eleconomista.com.mx/arteseideas/Urgen-a-legislar-en-materia-de-Inteligencia-Artificial-en-Mexico-20230507-0035.html
- A Mexican think-tank’s research on the application of AI in education (IMCO) concludes that it is urgent that the Ministry of Public Education (SEP) traces a path and design timely policies so that Mexico can take advantage of AI in education. https://imco.org.mx/la-inteligencia-artificial-ia-revolucionara-la-educacion-mexico-no-puede-quedarse-atras/
- In April 2023, the Mexican Senate presented a report on AI, where they admitted that the technology will contribute 16 trillion dollars to the world economy by 2030. However, they admitted that Mexico does not have a strategy to regulate AI. https://es.beincrypto.com/unesco-asesorara-mexico-crear-regulacion-ia/
- According to UNDP’s Human Development Report 2021-22 Uncertain Times, Unsettled Lives: Shaping our Future in a Transforming World, "instead of leaving the evolution of new technologies in the hands of markets or the limited incentives of a few actors, it is essential to actively orient new technologies towards the expansion of human capabilities”. https://www.undp.org/egypt/publications/human-development-report-2021-22-uncertain-times-unsettled-lives-shaping-our-future-transforming-world
SIGNALS AROUND EFFORTS TO REGULATE AI IN MEXICO:
- The Mexican Senate announced that UNESCO will collaborate with Mexican authorities to create projects related to Artificial Intelligence (AI) such as algorithm transparency, bias reduction. They will elaborate a diagnosis on the technology in the country and create a roadmap for action. https://es.beincrypto.com/unesco-asesorara-mexico-crear-regulacion-ia/
Value proposition: What added value or unique value proposition is your Accelerator Lab bringing to solving this challenge? Why is it your Lab that needs to work on this challenge and not other actors within UNDP, other stakeholders in the country respectively? Why is it worth investing resources to this challenge?
Our Accelerator Lab can provide expertise in participatory and anticipatory methodologies to address the complexity of the challenge and yield valuable insights regarding the risks and opportunities of AI systems in the country.
Within UNDP, the Lab is uniquely positioned to address this challenge because of its ability to surface grassroots narratives and innovations, and connect them to policymakers to advocate for more inclusive and just AI systems to catalyze change. This can help to address the power imbalances embedded in the lifecycle of AI systems.
Additionally, the Lab’s ability to serve as a convener of actors from multiple sectors and initiatives working on different scales can provide a valuable learning space to generate learnings, leverage the work that has already been done, and articulate collective action. Moreover, UNDP Mexico is uniquely positioned to advocate for human development in the national conversations and policymaking processes of AI.
Given that UNDP Mexico hasn’t worked on AI as a driver for development, and that it is an issue of great importance, it is worth investing resources on this challenge to help our Country Office explore how it can best contribute to enhance AI’s opportunities and mitigate its risks. By investing now in this learning cycle, we hope to contribute to our CO’s capacity to anticipate changes and expand its offering.
It is worth mentioning that Mexico will hold presidential elections in 2024 and it is foreseeable that, to some extent, AI will be present in the candidates’ proposals. As candidates roll out their proposals and when eventually a new administration takes charge, the results from this learning cycle will help UNDP Mexico to be better positioned to assist the government with this subject matter.
Lastly, AccLab Mexico can exchange insights and value propositions with other Labs working on the same topic—which can be especially relevant as we enter a stage of multilateral conversations for building a global capacity for AI governance—contributing to the evolution of our learning network and demonstrating how country led R&D can inform UNDP’s global offers.
Short “tweet” summary: We would like to tweet what you are working on, can you summarize your challenge in a maximum of 280 characters?
AccLab Mexico is exploring how to promote AI systems as a driver for sustainable development in Mexico. We want to identify leverage points to mitigate risks and advance opportunities to place people’s wellbeing at the forefront of the life cycle of AI systems (development, use).
Learning questions
Learning question: What is your learning question for this challenge? What do you need to know or understand to work on your challenge statement?
What risks and opportunities for sustainable development in Mexico stem from the design and development of AI systems?
What risks and opportunities for sustainable development in Mexico stem from the use of AI systems?
What leverage points should be intervened to harness AI’s potential and mitigate its risks to promote sustainable development and serve minorities and vulnerable communities?
To what stage(s) in the learning cycle does your learning question relate?
Sense, Explore
Usage of methods: Relating to your choice above, how will you use your methods & tools for this learning question? What value do these add in answering your learning question?
The chosen methods will allow us to: (1) address the problem from a systems perspective, mapping the elements, actors and relationships that constitute it; (2) understand the values, needs, behaviors and world views that people hold about AI; (3) articulate a diversity of data and actors to collectively understand the system and envision paths for action; and (4) shape scenarios of the future that can inspire action.
Existing data gaps: Relating to your choice above, what existing gaps in data or information do these new sources of data addressing? What value do these add in answering your learning question?
These data sources will help us to: (1) understand the needs, hopes, fears, world views that people across the AI ecosystem hold in order to identify risks and opportunities; (2) envision future scenarios; (3) visualize opportunities and risks of AI in a more tangible way (e.g. through maps, visualizations) in order to make the AI system more relatable and inspire action.
5Gender equality
16Peace, justice and strong institutions
17Partnerships for the goals
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