With technology advancing rapidly, countries around the world are grappling with the challenge of implementing and adapting to a changing reality in which artificial intelligence is playing an increasingly important role. From Canada and Finland, which pioneered the establishment of national AI strategies as early as 2017, to the recent addition of countries such as Brazil, Egypt, Hungary and Spain, the global arena is witnessing the growing importance of AI in shaping the future of nations [1].
The Ministry of Digitization, reacting to these global trends, has decided to initiate a team on the use of AI. This step underscores how important it is for Poland to stay abreast of international efforts and to engage in the development and implementation of AI technologies at the national level. It is worth noting that each country faces unique challenges and opportunities in the use of AI, as reflected in the diversity of approaches and timelines for implementing national strategies.
A pioneering step
In the era of the 21st century, AI appears to be a powerful engine of change, opening the door to a social, economic and administrative revolution such as we have not experienced before. The image of Poland thriving as a global pioneer in the field of AI once seemed only a distant dream, but now, thanks to the dynamic PL/AI team, composed of the leading minds of both the Polish and international technology arena, it is becoming a real prospect. The mission of this team is to create innovative strategies for the use of AI at the heart of key government sectors – from revolutionizing education and public health, to enhancing national security and efficiency in government. The PL/AI initiative is not only a declaration of Poland’s readiness to enter the era of the global AI revolution, but also a testament to our courage and ambition [2].
AI is not only a catalyst for innovation, but also a powerful tool in increasing productivity by automating processes and optimizing production, which in turn translates into impressive economic growth and strengthening Poland’s international position. Investment in AI is a ticket to creating new markets and industries, giving room to develop innovative products and services that can revolutionize our daily lives. In the public sector, AI promises to transform management and administration by automating routine tasks and improving decision-making processes, opening up prospects for the development of smart cities, where management of resources and services reaches new levels of efficiency. Artificial intelligence also holds the promise of significantly improving the quality of life of citizens, especially in such key areas as health and education.
Who is involved in creating a Polish direction for AI?
- Agnieszka Mikołajczyk-Barela: As Senior AI Engineer at Chaptr, she develops large language models. Her previous experience includes leading the NLP team at Voicelab.AI and leading the HearAI and Detect Waste projects. She also holds a PhD from Gdansk University of Technology, specializing in detecting and reducing errors in AI data and models.
- Kamila Staryga: Her career is a combination of entrepreneurship and product management in women’s health and AI. She co-founded Rita Health and previously worked on innovation projects at Google X, ATAP and Flo Health.
- Marek Cygan: She is a professor at the Institute of Computer Science at the University of Warsaw. He specializes in robot learning, reinforcement learning and computer vision. As co-founder of Nomagic, he contributed to the development of intelligent robots for warehouses.
- Tomasz Czajka: He is an expert in open source software and AI. He worked on optimizing computing center infrastructure for Google and at SpaceX on the Crew Dragon control software. He is also a world champion in ACM ICPC team programming.
- Karol Kurach: His experience includes work on deep neural networks, work at Google Brain and co-authoring the systems used in Gmail.
- Lukasz Kidzinski: Currently a researcher at Stanford University, he specializes in bioinformatics and the use of AI in medical data analysis. He founded Saliency AI, a company dedicated to automating medical imaging processes.
- Miron Mironiuk: He founded Cosmose AI, a company working in the field of AI for commerce in Asian markets. He is also the initiator of the “Programming = Our Second Language” program.
In the rapidly evolving intersection of artificial intelligence and politics, identifying significant AI milestones is crucial but challenging due to observability and reliability issues. While the direct impact of AI on election outcomes remains difficult to quantify, short-term realistic milestones include AI’s increasing involvement in legislative processes, such as drafting bills and amendments and influencing political messages. More speculative, but increasingly likely, are scenarios in which artificial intelligence could establish a political party or autonomously generate political funding. The real challenge, however, is the observability of these milestones: determining the extent of AI’s influence on political dynamics can be subtle and indirect [3]. As AI continues to permeate the political landscape, it is imperative to remain vigilant, ensuring that these advances are aimed at strengthening democratic processes and social well-being rather than undermining them.
Bibliography:
[1] OECD, An overview of national AI strategies and policies https://goingdigital.oecd.org/data/notes/No14_ToolkitNote_AIStrategies.pdf
[2] Ministry of Digitization, Polish AI pioneers will advise the Ministry of Digitization, https://www.gov.pl/web/cyfryzacja/polscy-pionierzy-ai-beda-doradzac-ministerstwu-cyfryzacji
[3] Bruce Schneier & Nathan E. Sanders, Six ways that AI could change politics, https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/07/28/1076756/six-ways-that-ai-could-change-politics/ [accessed 11.02.2024].
Cover photography: Ministry of Digitization
Zuzanna Czernicka
