Artificial Intelligence (AI)

USPA NEWS - The Artificial Intelligence Ethics Law is a Much-Needed Addition to the Iraqi Civil Code

Artificial Intelligence (AI) refers to the ability of many of today’s computer applications to actually learn as they perform complex tasks that previously required human input and oversight in the past. For example, one of the most common AI programs gaining wide acceptance creates documents – customer communications, business proposals, creative materials, and even academic work – based on parameters set by the user and input into the program. Some AI programs create text work by surveying data from across the internet and using that data to “write” materials. However, AI programs also “learn” by imitating the action of the human brain's neural networks.

This specific learning behavior characterizes AI computer programs, allowing them to mimic human mental abilities and work patterns. As noted, the most important of these characteristics is the ability to learn, deduce, and react to situations that were not originally programmed into the application. This raises many questions and concerns: AI computers and programs may someday be fully capable of adopting human behavior. This presents a host logistical, moral and indeed legal questions touching virtually every area of society – in Iraq and around the world.



Such questions and the issues they raise are particularly important in the area of law. Legal questions AI presents are even more crucial in countries with less developed or advanced technological infrastructures. At present, the Iraqi Civil Code lacks a definition of AI, due in part to the fact that Iraq is not technologically advanced in the field of smart industries and AI.

This aspect of the Iraqi Civil Code must be updated to reflect the increasing role that AI will play throughout our Country and the world. AI is perhaps the important technological innovation of the present time due to the important roles that its applications play in various fields. This is also due to the characteristics that distinguish AI, the goals it achieves, and the products it produces. The diversity of potential AI applications and the efficiency of AI programs enable them to accomplish tasks assigned to them even more efficiently than humans. This is an important consideration that will undoubtedly raise questions and challenges we currently cannot imagine, a fact that underscores the need for this important addition to the Iraqi Civil Code.



Enhanced Performance, Increased Productivity

AI improves the performance and productivity of people and institutions by automating processes or tasks that required human power in the past. AI can “think” for people, allowing them to do other things. More importantly, AI understands and integrates data on a scale no human can achieve. Productivity has increased as countries, institutions, and companies have begun to rely on AI for mundane tasks, such as writing letters to customers. As such tasks are taken on by computers, economic benefits are realized owing to the speed and economy AI achieves in manufacturing products or performing services.

The most important factors defending the adoption of artificial intelligence in the work of institutions or companies relate to these benefits of enhanced productivity and economics:

1. AI fosters high-performance computing and easy task completion with minimal human oversight.

2. AI makes large amounts of data available, enhancing learning opportunities.

3. Applied AI provides a distinct competitive advantage to companies.



These facts have been demonstrated by the following: In the 1980s, AI research that mimicked the knowledge and analytical skills of one or more human experts saw AI profits in global markets reach more than $ $1 billion. Profits from AI research also increased in the 1990s. However, AI has achieved even greater success in the current era, as AI is used in logistics, data mining, medical diagnosis, and many other fields throughout the technology industry.

AI: Increasing Popularity in Modern Society

AI is becoming increasingly popular in modern society, solving a range of problems and completing diverse tasks across various industries and professional fields. The most prominent examples of AI applications that have become popular in modern societies are:



1. Robotics

Robotics is one of the most advanced and complex technologies that use AI to create effective solutions to various problems. When a robot uses AI, it becomes an intelligent mechanical machine that performs tasks that a human would need to perform manually but does so with the same intelligence as that of a human.

There are many forms of robots, the most famous of which are those used in advanced industries. These smart automatic devices can be automatically adapted and reprogrammed, used for many purposes, and can move on several axes. This type is used in major industrial companies for several purposes, including welding, dyeing, and ironing metals; picking up and transporting objects; and monitoring the quality or suitability of a factory’s final product before export.

2. The ‘Super Doctor’

A “Super Doctor” is a doctor who, through AI, can diagnose serious diseases such as cancer, for example, before it is too late and it spreads in the patient’s body. A super doctor harnesses the power of artificial intelligence devices that can analyze images and diagnose any possible early signs using Husseini x-rays. A super doctor with AI-based tools can also perform surgical operations on some patients.



3. Self-Driving Cars

Self-driving cars move on the road without any human intervention, with the help of their built-in navigation system. This type of car is guided by artificial intelligence and automatic learning technologies. Tesla is one of the first car brands to launch a self-driving vehicle to global markets. Other manufacturers such as Audi, Cadillac, Volvo are now also developing their own model of smart cars, all employing AI technology.

4. Applications in the Search for Life on Other Planets

In the United States, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) now uses AI to search for life on other planets. The devices they send, known as Rovers, explore the terrain of Mars and elsewhere with greater detail and accuracy than ever before. Thanks to AI-based technology, they can detect the elements and components present on those planets to determine with certainty the possibility of life on such places.



5. AI in Civil and Criminal Legal Cases



In the judicial and legal field, AI plays a major role in solving many legal problems and issues, particularly in proving an issue true or untrue. It has been used in analyzing images, videos, and data. For example, smart cameras using AI have unparalleled abilities to analyze images and moving clips, making a huge contribution to the practice of law and specialists working in the field.

6. Smart Real Estate Agents

Selling real estate has become difficult in recent years, requiring many procedures and involving great risks. As a result, home sellers and real estate companies have increasingly employed AI in applications that facilitate real estate sales.



7. Fighting Cyber Crime

Many countries have used AI systems to investigate cybercrimes such as hacking and data destruction.

8. Tracking Wrongdoers within the Framework of Civil and Criminal Liability

Governments worldwide are working in cooperation with telecommunications and smart device companies to track people's locations via phone networks and through AI applications they launch on phones, smartwatches, and fitness-tracking devices.

It's clear that AI is present in many industries and fields, and that presence will only grow in the coming years. As the above suggests, it is crucial that the Iraqi legislator enact the Artificial Intelligence Ethics Law, legislation that stipulates the formation of an information and AI center that includes jurists and specialists in modern technology and various other specializations.

In addition, the Iraqi government and the Iraqi Council of Representatives must pay more attention to AI issues and the harm that its use may cause others. The government and council must establish legal rules that regulate AI work and define civil and criminal liability, especially when traditional legal rules are unable to determine that liability.