The Global Privacy Assembly (GPA) first met in 1979 as the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners. The Assembly is the leading global forum for data protection and privacy authorities and brings together more than 130 data protection and privacy authorities from across the globe.
This year, the GPA met in Istanbul hosted by the Turkish Data Protection Authority. On the first day of GPA 2022, Prof. Mantelero gave a keynote on the interplay between Big Data/AI and data protection.
Starting from the effects of the collection and processing of large-scale datasets, the speech focused on the impacts of analytics and AI technologies on the distribution of power within the digital societies. Prof. Mantelero highlighted the risks related to ‘platformisation’ of physical spaces, e.g., smart cities, the consequences on labour exploitation, and the effects of the rise of big players with regard to competition.
Against this background, prof. Mantelero emphasised the need to adopt a broader perspective in assessing the impact of AI on our societies, going beyond data protection and focusing on the impact on human rights, not only in terms of risk assessment but also with regard to the future legal framework. In this respect, he outlined a long-term scenario in which AI regulation will encompass data protection provisions and where data protection authorities will play a key role in overseeing AI applications and their effects on society.