Opposition for new elections, government parties want to continue working
Vienna (PK) – The decision was made by the majority today National Council meeting the establishment of a new service center for artificial intelligence, which will be located at Rundfunk und Telekom Regels-GmbH (RTR). A new election request from the FPÖ did not find a majority.
New service point for artificial intelligence
The new one approved today with the votes of the governing parties Service point for artificial intelligence In the future, it will, among other things, provide information about the regulatory framework and possible effects of AI on cyber security, conduct studies, analyzes and specialist conferences, provide web guidelines for the use of AI in the media sector including best practice models, advise public and private legal entities and itself regularly exchange information with market participants in the media sector. The eleven members of the “Advisory Board for Artificial Intelligence” are to be appointed by the Federal Chancellor (3) or the Finance Minister (8) for a term of four years and come from the areas of ethics, research, economics, law and technology.
Eva-Maria Himmelbauer (ÖVP) emphasized that AI is a revolution and that the new AI service point should support companies in using AI systems sensibly and generating added value economically. It is also about disseminating knowledge about AI, providing information for users and creating scientific expertise, says Himmelbauer. In a further expansion phase it is planned to include further interest groups. With regard to the European AI Act, the creation of the AI service point is a “useful preparatory measure”.
The creation of an AI service point in Austria, even though the AI Act at the European level is “not yet ready,” is “gold plating,” said Douglas Hoyos-Trauttmansdorff (NEOS). It is also unclear who the planned AI service point should be for. At the same time, “nothing goes further” in the creation of a national data strategy, he criticized and therefore tabled a motion for a resolution calling for the strategy to be presented in the first quarter of 2024 as well as the already announced linking of register data and the naming of the central information point within the framework of the data Governance Acts demanded. The motion did not find a majority and was therefore rejected.
Artificial intelligence is undeniably a big topic and an AI service center is fundamentally the right approach, but the draft law presented for this lacks a holistic structure, criticized Muna Duzdar (SPÖ). The planned AI service point is aimed at the economy, for example the interests of employees and consumers are not taken into account. This limited focus is also reflected in the advisory board provided for this purpose, said Duzdar. Katharina Kucharowits (SPÖ) described the creation of the new AI service point as a “quick-quick action”, which is “purely a contact point for companies” and will not help victims of deepfakes, for example.
The new AI service point serves to build up know-how, the certification and market monitoring of AI applications, transparency and the development of knowledge, emphasized Süleyman Zorba (Greens). It’s about finding a balance between promoting and regulating innovation. Meri Disoski (Greens) said that gender-specific violence is increasingly becoming digital, so women are becoming more and more victims of deepfake porn. The new AI service point is a first step in the right direction to find effective measures against these acts of violence, because the advisory board will provide the government with well-founded advice on problems and dangers caused by AI.
It’s about taking advantage of the opportunities offered by AI, but also saying “that we don’t want certain things,” emphasized Florian Tursky, State Secretary for Digitalization. The European Union’s AI Act therefore follows a risk-based approach to AI applications. The new AI service point in Austria is therefore intended to create legal certainty for entrepreneurs in questions relating to the use of AI and is intended to provide advice to citizens and entrepreneurs. Austria is taking on a pioneering role. However, the creation of the position is not the full implementation of the AI strategy, said Tursky. The social partnership and all stakeholders would “of course” be included in the creation of the AI strategy. Regarding the motion for a resolution introduced by NEOS MP Douglas Hoyos-Trauttmansdorff, Tursky admitted that Austria was “behind” in implementing the Data Governance Act, but that the national data strategy should be presented by the end of the quarter.
Opposition for new elections, government parties want to continue working
The opposition parties sharply criticized the government during the debate on a New election request from the FPÖ, which did not find a majority. It is time to initiate a turnaround so that things in this country are “finally better again,” said Michael Schnedlitz (FPÖ), who followed Chancellor Karl Nehammer’s appearance in Wels last Friday and the presentation of the ÖVP’s “Austria Plan”. heavily criticized. The damage caused by the federal government is “immeasurable” and Chancellor Nehammer represents “pure failure, weakness and dishonesty,” said Susanne Fürst (FPÖ).
Criticism also came from the NEOS. The “Austria plan” presented by Nehammer is “a self-indictment” in many areas, said Douglas Hoyos-Trauttmansdorff (NEOS). The ÖVP is not solving the problems, but is pushing them into the future.
The country has the highest inflation in all of Western Europe, food prices and rents are high, there is a two-tier medical system and the excess profits tax has been abolished, criticized Jörg Leichtfried from the SPÖ. That’s not how you treat people; it’s “time for a real reform chancellor,” said Leichtfried.
The FPÖ wants to vote now because it wants to bring in “the friends from the identitarian movement” quickly, said Michael Hammer (ÖVP). However, the citizens would not want early elections and the government would implement major projects. The Chancellor’s “Austria Plan” stands for “shaping instead of dividing”.
Lukas Hammer (Greens) calculated that this would be the sixth new election proposal in this legislative period. The federal government was elected to work. “We will work through it and still have a lot to do, especially when it comes to climate policy,” said Hammer. (Continuation of the National Council) bea
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