Driving AI adoption

Jean Carberry, Assistant Secretary at the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment with responsibility for Digital, EU, and Climate, talks to Ciaran Brennan about how the Department is driving AI adoption.

Ciaran Brennan (CB): What is your department is doing to drive AI adoption?

Jean Carberry (JC): The first thing we are doing is putting guardrails in place for ethical and safe use of AI because we think that trust is really important. We are also raising awareness of AI and its use cases among SMEs because the most important thing is that they recognise that this is something that can save them money and time; that there is something in it for them. The Department has a range of supports for businesses who want to adopt AI. We provide grants and advice, and vouchers that allow firms to retain consultants. We have also put in place a network of European digital innovation hubs which provide training and advice, and allow businesses to test AI solutions before they invest in them.

CB: What AI adoption efforts are working well?

JC: The Department is responsible for implementing the EU AI Act which provides the governance framework for ethical use of AI across Europe. Public sector bodies and regulators have cooperated very well with us on this. This means we can successfully implement the act in a coherent way in time for the deadlines that have been set by the EU.

CB: What challenges has the Department encountered?

JC: The big challenge is driving awareness and understanding of AI. There is so much misinformation out there; people are nervous of AI. They know it is an important development but they are not quite sure how to approach it. We have programmes to demystify AI and help people understand what they need to know, what they need to worry about, and what they do not need to worry about. Also, we appointed an AI ambassador, Patricia Scanlon, who has done great work in making it easy for people to understand AI and what it means for them.

CB: How can job security be assured as AI is adopted?

JC: The important thing to remember is that AI is coming anyway. It is not something that we can stop. What government needs to do is ensure is that there are programmes in place for people to get the skills they need to use AI properly. Ideally, AI should rise all the boats and help business to grow. That will drive increased employment. To not prepare for AI and for businesses not to adopt AI would actually be the worst thing they could do, because their competitors will and that would have a more negative impact on jobs.

CB: What unique aspects of the economy position the State well to adopt AI?

JC: Our biggest selling point is our young, skilled population and our attractiveness as a destination for talent. We are great at innovation which means that this is a great place to be an AI startup, it is a great place to invest if you are an AI company. That is why we have attracted so many new, big AI businesses, our skills base is so good and our people are so good.