FM Nirmala Sitharaman Calls For Evolved Regulations To Tackle AI & Digital Economy Challenges

With artificial intelligence (AI) raising questions on market power, access to data, algorithmic biases, and competitive harm in the past few years, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said the Competition Commission of India should evolve regulations to counter these "new age" challenges. "Free and fair digital markets are challenged by the emergence of gatekeeper platforms, asymmetries in data access, and cross-border implications of digital business models," she said in her keynote address at the Competition Commission of India's 16th Annual Day event, adding that "The rise of cross-border digital monopolies demands global cooperation and agile regulations." CCI Chairperson Ravneet Kaur, who was also present at the event, said that India's competition watchdog is conducting a market study on artificial intelligence to manage issues from digital competition. A report based on this study will likely be out in another two months, another CCI official told Informist.