Statement on AI Policy

Western University’s approach to Artificial Intelligence (AI) governance is grounded in sound institutional governance: we will not create parallel, technology-specific governance streams for a single tool class. Instead, we will pursue coherent, coordinated, and technology-neutral policy that can be sustained over time. 

International guidance on governing innovation emphasizes moving from “regulate and forget” toward “adapt and learn,” supported by holistic, better-co-ordinated governance models and technology-neutral approaches.

AI is a general-purpose technology, deployed across many sectors and institutional functions, and it is evolving rapidly. In this context, attempting to define and govern every possible AI use case in advance is neither a reasonable, nor durable, position; highly prescriptive, tool-specific frameworks risk becoming outdated before they are fully implemented.

Accordingly, Western will govern AI primarily through its existing policy framework, updating existing policies and issuing guidance where necessary, rather than building an AI-only governance regime. 

Policy should not attempt to “govern technology” in the abstract; it should govern human behaviour and institutional responsibilities. Western already maintains robust policies that speak directly to the behaviours that matter in AI-enabled contexts, including academic integrity, research ethics, privacy and data stewardship, information security, accessibility and equity, intellectual property, procurement, and respectful conduct. Consistent with this approach, the OECD’s AI recommendation explicitly notes the relevance of existing legal, regulatory, and policy frameworks to AI, while recognizing that their appropriateness may need to be assessed and adapted as AI evolves.

Written by Mark Daley

References:

OECD Recommendation of the Council for Agile Regulatory Governance to Harness Innovation (.PDF)

OECD Recommendation of the Council on Artificial Intelligence (.PDF)