AI regulation: Challenges, the EU AI Act and Turkey’s approach

Abstract

This paper discusses the ethical and technical challenges in AI regulation, the impact of the EU AI Act and concerns of experts, and Turkey’s possible approach on AI regulation taking into consideration potential outcomes in adopting or not adopting the EU Act by addressing various obstacles in the processes of adopting and implying the Act. Through this analysis, this paper aims to explore regulatory challenges, their reflection on rulemaking processes and research processes in Turkey and evaluate the importance of geopolitics. The challenges in regulation are examined as 1) ethical questions and copyright problems and 2) regulatory problems, which discusses the following topics such as technical difficulties, the importance of global approach and international norms, significance of determining the aim and scope of the regulation. Moreover, the EU AI Act is examined as it offers risk-based solutions to the mentioned issues with a global approach and plays an important role in the field. However, there are obstacles to international cooperation such as 1) aligning with national policies and 2) capacity of the state to provide support to the private sector for research and implying the Act, 3) geopolitical priorities. Considering its regional importance, and being a candidate country, which actively carries out projects in this sphere within the scope of the EU, as well as being the observer state during the process of enacting the act, Turkey is analyzed as a case study. This study highlights the multifaceted aspects of AI regulation by discussing challenges and obstacles within the scope of rulemaking, challenges in international cooperation, and state level in the lens of Turkey.