Original media release by Consumers International (8/11/2023).
Every year on March 15 the consumer movement celebrates?World Consumer Rights Day, raising global awareness?of consumer?rights, consumer protection and empowerment. Consumers International?is proud and privileged to coordinate this day of global collaboration,?with?200 consumer advocacy members in over 100 countries.??Last year, we brought together energy leaders to protect consumers in the transition to clean energy, and in 2022, our call for fair digital finance was heard by millions of consumers worldwide.
This year, Consumers International has selected ‘Fair and responsible AI for consumers’ as the theme for World Consumer Rights Day 2024.
Breakthroughs in generative AI have taken the digital world by storm. The technology is set to have an enormous impact on people’s lives, in the way we work, communicate, gather information and much more. It will also have serious implications for consumer safety and digital fairness. Misinformation, privacy violations, and discriminatory practices are concerns, as well as how AI-driven platforms can spread false information and perpetuate biases. We must move quickly to address these issues for a fair and responsible AI.
Our Campaign: Unveiling the consumer search future
Our campaign will champion fairness, demand accountability, and pave the way for an AI future which enables smart and empowered consumers.
It will focus on generative AI chatbots, which have long been used in customer service and support. These chatbots increasingly integrate AI systems to mimic human conversation in sophisticated and specific ways, such as in online search, where leading technology companies have already started to implement generative AI in search experiences.
Search is a technology that consumers interact with daily, and often use without realising. It utilises complex algorithms to generate search results which can be tailored to individual users. Adding generative AI to this already opaque technology risks introducing new and greater harms for consumers. Our campaign aims to explore the extent to which consumers can trust generative AI chatbots.
Our campaign will:
- Build public awareness and drive discussion on generative AI chatbots through a social media campaign to understand consumer experiences.
- Release insights which investigate generative AI platform risk and build a foundation for consumer trust. We will identify where policy interventions are needed to reduce harmful practices.
- Unite digital leaders and consumer advocates in an impact-driven dialogue and debate series, addressing themes – consumer empowerment, bias, transparency and the future of consumer AI.
How to join
For World Consumer Rights Day 2024, consumer groups, international organisations, civil society, business and government will be united in a loud and clear call for fair and responsible AI for consumers.
- Express interest to join our debate series. Contact Oarabile Mudongo at omudongo@consint.org.
- We will invite Consumers International Members to take part in an ‘AI Experiment’ to explore trust in Generative AI chatbots. Members should look out for more information via email.
- Join our social media campaign, ‘AI Guardian: Unveiling the consumer search future‘ which we will launch in January 2024 using the hashtag #GenerativeAIGuardian. Follow us on?Twitter,?Facebook,?and LinkedIn?for all the latest news and announcements as we get closer to March 15.