The Italian government’s privacy watchdog has taken action against the popular artificial intelligence (AI) software ChatGPT over data privacy concerns, making Italy the first Western country to do so. The Italian Data Protection Authority has temporarily blocked the AI chatbot, stating that it will remain blocked until ChatGPT respects privacy. The watchdog has limited the company from holding Italian users’ data, citing that ChatGPT developer OpenAI had no legal basis to justify the mass collection and storage of personal data for the purpose of training the algorithms underlying the operation of the platform. The watchdog also referenced a data breach on March 20 when user conversations and payment information were compromised, a problem the US firm blamed on a bug.
Since ChatGPT was launched, it has seen meteoric growth, with millions of people using the software for activities ranging from developing architectural designs to writing essays and drafting messages, songs, novels, and jokes. It has also sparked an AI race among other tech firms and venture capitalists. Google is rushing out its own chatbot, called Bard, and investors are pouring cash into all manner of AI projects. However, critics have long fretted over where ChatGPT and its competitors get their data or how they process it.
The AI systems that power such chatbots, known as large language models, are able to mimic human writing styles based on the huge trove of digital books and online writing they have ingested. Some public schools and universities around the world have blocked the ChatGPT website from their local networks over student plagiarism concerns, but it was not clear how Italy would block it at a nationwide level.
This week, hundreds of experts and industry figures signed an open letter calling for a pause in the development of powerful AI systems, arguing they posed profound risks to society and humanity. The letter was prompted by OpenAI’s release this month of GPT-4, a more powerful version of its chatbot, with even less transparency about its data sources.
The Italian watchdog ordered OpenAI to report within 20 days what measures it has taken to ensure the privacy of users’ data or face a fine of up to either $22m or 4 percent of its annual global revenue. AI experts said it is likely that more governments will follow suit and issue similar regulations. The San Francisco-based company’s CEO, Sam Altman, announced this week that he would embark on a six-continent trip in May to talk about the technology with users and developers. His trip is to include a stop in Brussels, where European Union lawmakers have been negotiating sweeping new rules to limit high-risk AI tools. Altman said his time to Europe would also include stops in Madrid, Munich, London, and Paris.