In October 2021, Chile published its National AI Policy following public consultations held the previous year. The policy outlines a main objective, four transversal principles, and three interdependent axes to guide AI development through 2031.
The main goal is to position Chile at the forefront of AI research, development and innovation. The policy emphaysizes creating an ecosystem that develops new capacities across various sectors while adhering to principles of opportunity, responsibility, sustainable development, and improving quality of life.
Key principles include AI focused on human wellbeing and respecting human rights, AI for sustainable development, inclusive AI that addresses biases and prevents discrimination, and alignment with international AI efforts and agreements.
An accompanying AI Action Plan details around 70 priority tasks in areas like education, product development, and talent management. However, the policy lacks specific implementation deadlines, funding mechanisms, and monitoring instruments.
The drafting process involved extensive public engagement, with over 9,000 people participating through seminars, workshops, and consultations. However, civil society groups criticised a lack of transparency around regional workshop outputs and difficulties accessing meeting minutes. The inclusivity of the process was also questioned, with only 21% female respondents in the second consultation stage.
In January 2024, the Ministry of Science launched a new public consultation to update the Ethics and Governance axis of the National AI Policy. This online consultation, open until March 15, 2024, seeks input on topics including gender equity, AI's impact on work, and environmental considerations.
Chile's constitution protects the right to privacy, with a 2018 amendment explicitly covering personal data. The 1999 Law on Protection of Private Life regulates data processing, but Chile currently lacks a dedicated data protection authority with comprehensive oversight powers.
A draft bill introduced in 2017 aims to modernise data protection laws and create a new supervisory authority. This Bill Regulating the Processing and Protection of Personal Data passed the Senate in January 2022 and is under consideration in the Chamber of Deputies.
There is currently no legally established right to algorithmic transparency in Chile. The draft data protection bill would introduce a "right not to be subject to automated decision-making," allowing individuals to object to solely automated decisions. However, unlike EU regulations, it does not require proactive disclosure of information about automated decision-making systems.
In December 2023, the Chilean government published guidelines for responsible AI use in the public sector, addressing themes like human-centric AI, transparency, and data privacy. These guidelines took effect on January 1, 2024.
Chile also approved the Ibero American Charter on AI in Civil Service in November 2023, which aims to provide a roadmap for implementing AI in public administration while addressing challenges like algorithmic bias, privacy protection, and maintaining human control.
The deployment of facial recognition systems in Chile has raised significant privacy and effectiveness concerns. A system used in a Santiago shopping mall reportedly had a 90% false positive rate when cross-referencing images with police databases. Similar issues were reported with systems used by local governments and the Civil Registry.
Despite criticism from civil society groups, Chile has expanded its use of drone-based surveillance systems equipped with facial recognition technology. No regulatory initiatives to ban or limit mass deployment of facial recognition have been proposed.
Chile has actively engaged in international AI initiatives. As an OECD member, it endorsed the OECD AI Principles and has incorporated these into its national strategy. Chile also adopted the UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of AI in 2021.
In October 2023, Chile hosted the first Regional Forum on AI Ethics for Latin American and Caribbean countries, resulting in the Santiago Declaration to Promote Ethical AI. Chile will lead a working group to establish a Regional Council on AI for the region.
Chile participated in the AI Safety Summit in November 2023 and endorsed the Bletchley Declaration, committing to international cooperation on safe and responsible AI development.
This country report is our interpretation and summary of the "CAIDP Artificial Intelligence & Democratic Values Index 2023". The full report can be found here - https://www.caidp.org/reports/aidv-2023/