The European Commission has launched a new research unit that will investigate the impact of the algorithms made and used by prominent online platforms and search engines such as Facebook and Google.
The European Centre for Algorithmic Transparency launched on April 18 and will help the European Commission identify and address any potential risks posed by these platforms.
ECAT will be embedded within the European Union’s existing Joint Research Centre, which conducts research on a broad range of subjects including artificial intelligence.
The team will consist of “data scientists, AI experts, social scientists and legal experts” who will analyze and evaluate the AI-backed algorithms used by Big Tech firms.
AI-based programs are built using a series of complex algorithms, meaning ECAT will also be looking at algorithms that underpin AI chatbots such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which some believe could eventually replace search engines.
On its website, the commission claims that ECAT will conduct algorithmic accountability and transparency audits, as required by the Digital Services Act, a set of European Union rules enforceable as of Nov. 16, 2022.
According to the EU’s internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton, ECAT will “look under the hood” of large search engines and online platforms in order to “see how their algorithms function and contribute to the spread of illegal and harmful content.”