Conclusion
The advent of artificial intelligence presents both opportunities and challenges for legislative bodies worldwide. AI has the potential to significantly enhance efficiency, transparency, and engagement in lawmaking processes. However, realizing these benefits requires thoughtful integration amidst ethical, legal, and technical complexities.
This paper aimed to provide a comprehensive perspective on AI adoption in parliaments over the past decade, examining innovations in machine learning and natural language processing and previewing current and potential use cases for the deployment of GenAI. The analysis highlighted legislative operational benefits like accelerated access to transcripts, real-time translation services, advanced document resource management, and elevated constituent interactions. It also covered limitations around bias, factual accuracy, and model generalizability.
Managing public perceptions and formulating policies around emerging technologies is essential. Our recommendations emphasize a phased approach beginning with controlled experimentation and information-sharing. We advise legislatures to invest in AI literacy, establish ethical guardrails, and learn from global best practices. With prudent implementation, AI can equip representative bodies to meet rising public expectations in the digital era while preserving human accountability in representative governance.
Legislatures now stand at a pivotal juncture. The choices they make today regarding AI governance will profoundly influence their capability to represent citizens effectively in the coming decades. As Samuel Hammond, Senior Economist at the Foundation for American Innovation, recently stated when testifying before the US House Oversight Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation:
The question is whether governments will keep up and adapt, or be stuck riding horses while society whizzes by in a race car. The risks from adopting AI in government must therefore be balanced against the greater risks associated with not adapting AI proactively enough.
We hope this paper supports legislative bodies in navigating this transition — harnessing AI to augment their capabilities while upholding public trust through transparency and human oversight. The principles and insights within can assist parliaments worldwide in developing nuanced strategies for AI adoption that strengthen democratic institutions.
