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EU throws down gauntlet to Big Tech over artificial intelligence risks – POLITICO

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Sour climate

A sour climate around the EU’s AI regulations and the drafting process for the guidance will likely affect tech companies’ calculations on how to respond. 

“The process for the code has so far not been well managed,” said Finnish European Parliament lawmaker Aura Salla, a conservative politician and former lobbyist for Meta, ahead of Thursday’s announcement. 

The thirteen experts produced a total of four drafts over nine months, a process that garnered the attention of over 1,000 participants and was discussed in several iterations of plenaries and four working groups — often in the evenings since some of the experts were based in the U.S. or Canada.

Google spokesperson Mathilde Méchin said the company was “looking forward to reviewing the code and sharing our views.” | John Mabanglo/EPA

The Commission’s Regnier applauded the process as “inclusive,” but both industry and civil society groups said they felt they had not been heard. 

The U.S. tech companies that must now decide whether to sign the code have also shown themselves critical of the EU’s approach to other parts of its AI regulation. 

Tech lobby groups, such as the CCIA, were among the first to call for a pause on the parts of the EU’s AI Act that had not yet been implemented — specifically, obligations for companies deploying high-risk AI systems, which are set to take effect next year.





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RRC getting real with artificial intelligence – Winnipeg Free Press

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Red River College Polytechnic is offering crash courses in generative artificial intelligence to help classroom teachers get more comfortable with the technology.

Foundations of Generative AI in Education, a microcredential that takes 15 hours to complete, gives participants guidance to explore AI tools and encourage ethical and effective use of them in schools.

Tyler Steiner was tasked with creating the program in 2023, shortly after the release of ChatGPT — a chatbot that generates human-like replies to prompts within seconds — and numerous copycat programs that have come online since.



MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS

Lauren Phillips, a RRC Polytech associate dean, said it’s important students know when they can use AI.

“There’s no putting that genie back in the bottle,” said Steiner, a curriculum developer at the post-secondary institute in Winnipeg.

While noting teachers can “lock and block” via pen-and-paper tests and essays, the reality is students are using GenAI outside school and authentic experiential learning should reflect the real world, he said.

Steiner’s advice?

Introduce it with the caveat students should withhold personal information from prompts to protect their privacy, analyze answers for bias and “hallucinations” (false or misleading information) and be wary of over-reliance on technology.

RRC Polytech piloted its first GenAI microcredential little more than a year ago. A total of 109 completion badges have been issued to date.

The majority of early participants in the training program are faculty members at RRC Polytech. The Winnipeg School Division has also covered the tab for about 20 teachers who’ve expressed interest in upskilling.

“There was a lot of fear when GenAI first launched, but we also saw that it had a ton of power and possibility in education,” said Lauren Phillips, associate dean of RRC Polytech’s school of education, arts and sciences.

Phillips called a microcredential “the perfect tool” to familiarize teachers with GenAI in short order, as it is already rapidly changing the kindergarten to Grade 12 and post-secondary education sectors.

Manitoba teachers have told the Free Press they are using chatbots to plan lessons and brainstorm report card comments, among other tasks.

Students are using them to help with everything from breaking down a complex math equation to creating schedules to manage their time. Others have been caught cutting corners.

Submitted assignments should always disclose when an author has used ChatGPT, Copilot or another tool “as a partner,” Phillips said.

She and Steiner said in separate interviews the key to success is providing students with clear instructions about when they can and cannot use this type of technology.

Business administration instructor Nora Sobel plans to spend much of the summer refreshing course content to incorporate their tips; Sobel recently completed all three GenAI microcredentials available on her campus.

Two new ones — Application of Generative AI in Education and Integration of Generative AI in Education — were added to the roster this spring.

Sobel said it is “overwhelming” to navigate this transformative technology, but it’s important to do so because employers will expect graduates to have the know-how to use them properly.

It’s often obvious when a student has used GenAI because their answers are abstract and generic, she said, adding her goal is to release rubrics in 2025-26 with explicit direction surrounding the active rather than passive use of these tools.