DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN LATIN AMERICA. EXPERIENCES, CHALLENGES, REGULATORY FRAMEWORKS AND GOVERNANCE IN REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE.
Since the launch and popularization of generative artificial intelligence (AI), with ChatGPT reaching large audiences in late 2022, discussion about the advantages and risks of its implementation and use has taken on new life in the region, with diverse approaches from both academia and institutions. Some Latin American countries, such as Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Colombia and Chile, took early action and thus took the lead in formulating national AI public policies, albeit with varying degrees of implementation; others, such as Panama, are only just taking their first steps. Still others, such as Bolivia, Venezuela, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Cuba, lack formal initiatives altogether. It should be noted that the mere existence of a legal instrument does not equate to its proper implementation: most lack funding and impact-assessment programs, and also fail to address environmental and gender-equity implications. This symposium proposes a space for critical reflection on the role of digital technologies, and particularly artificial intelligence, in the region, bringing together empirical experiences, analytical frameworks and public policy proposals that take into account the particularities of the Latin American context and its cultural, historical and institutional diversity. It will also analyze the advantages and risks of AI implementation in unequal societies, with emerging regimes showing clear autocratic tendencies and in an information environment where disinformation prevails. The discussion will address seven axes: a) regulatory and governance experiences of AI in countries of the region; b) experiences implementing AI in the public and private sectors; c) the digital divide, access and equity in emerging technologies such as AI; d) AI in elections: case studies in Latin America; e) platform economy and the transformation of work in the region; digital technologies; f) AI and surveillance; g) disinformation and AI.
