Developing homegrown artificial intelligence models and infrastructure is critical for Bangladesh to ensure the responsible use of the technology and to manage its social, economic and environmental risks, speakers said at a discussion in Dhaka on Monday.
The discussion, titled Responsible Artificial Intelligence for Bangladesh: Policy and Design Challenges, was held at the University of Dhaka Department of Microbiology lecture gallery and jointly organised by the University of Dhaka Institute of Information Technology and The Data Bank.
Opening the programme, University of Dhaka Institute of Information Technology Director Professor B M Mainul Hossain said careful and responsible planning was essential if Bangladesh was to harness artificial intelligence for national development.
Speaking at the event, University of Toronto Associate Professor of Computer Science Ishtiaque Ahmed said artificial intelligence systems require large amounts of electricity and water, creating serious challenges for resource-constrained countries such as Bangladesh.
He said infrastructure planning must take these limitations into account to avoid unintended economic and environmental costs.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Assistant Professor Sharifa Sultana said Bangladesh needs a clear, practical and well-defined national artificial intelligence policy before making large investments in the sector.
She said failing to incorporate artificial intelligence ethics into the education system could make it difficult to address the technology’s negative impacts in the future.
Augmedix Bangladesh Country Director Rashed Mujib Noman said access to high-quality local data is essential for building a domestic artificial intelligence ecosystem.
However, he said Bangladesh currently faces a serious shortage of usable local data, which remains a major obstacle to developing local models.
The discussion was attended by UNESCO Artificial Intelligence Experts Without Borders member Zulkarin Jahangir, officials from different levels of Bangladesh Bank, representatives of mobile phone operators and students of the University of Dhaka.
As part of the programme, University of Dhaka Institute of Information Technology students Tasnim and Mehezabin presented a research paper on responsible artificial intelligence, highlighting policy and design challenges relevant to Bangladesh.
