On 20 January 2025, the first day of his second term, President Trump revoked Executive Order 14110 on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence (“Biden Order”), signed by President Biden in October 2023. In doing so, President Trump fulfilled a campaign pledge to roll back the Biden Order, which the 2024 Republican platform described as a “dangerous” measure. Then on 23 January 2025, President Trump issued his own Executive Order on AI, entitled Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence.
On 28 November 2024, the Australian Government passed a law banning social media for children under the age of 16. The Australian Government’s recent move has raised questions in Singapore on the assessment and effectiveness of such bans, and whether there is a possibility of introducing a similar ban in Singapore.
These questions were addressed by the Ministry for Digital Development and Information during the parliament sitting on 7 January 2025.
ASEAN Digital Ministers’ Meeting on 16-17 January 2025.
The Guide supplements the ASEAN Guide on AI Governance and Ethics (2024), which focuses on traditional AI technologies and includes policy considerations relevant to generative AI.
The Infocomm Media Development Authority has launched a Code of Practice for Online Safety for App Distribution Services (ADSs) (“Code”), which requires designated ADSs to implement system-level measures to reduce the risk of exposure to harmful content for users, particularly for children.
The Code will take effect starting 31 March 2025.
The Singapore Parliament has passed the Protection from Scams Bill (“Bill”).
The Bill is intended to address the concerning situation surrounding scams in Singapore, with a high number of scams being observed despite other recent measures and extensive public education efforts in recent years.
Belgium’s new Private Investigation Act (PIA) was published in the Official Gazette on 6 December 2024, with most of its provisions having entered into force on 16 December 2024. The PIA replaces the 1991 Belgian Act on Private Detectives with the aim of modernizing the applicable legal framework in light of new investigation methods and the application of the General Data Protection Regulation. With its broader scope of application – this legislation is now also applicable to internal investigations – and the significant additional requirements it imposes, the PIA will undoubtedly impact many businesses operating in Belgium.
On 17 December 2024, the Bipartisan House Task Force on Artificial Intelligence released a report on “guiding principles, forward-looking recommendations, and policy proposals to ensure America continues to lead the world in responsible AI innovation.” The report focuses on 15 key areas, including intellectual property, data privacy, healthcare and federal preemption of state law. These principles, recommendations and policy proposals are meant to be a tool rather than the final word on AI. As such, it is anticipated that future AI legislators will use the report to craft AI policy.
The Hong Kong Government has published on 6 December 2024 a draft of the Protection of Critical Infrastructures (Computer Systems) Bill (“Bill”), marking a significant step towards enhancing cybersecurity standards in relation to essential services and critical societal or economic activities in Hong Kong. This Bill aims to protect the security of the critical computer systems (CCSs) of critical infrastructures (CIs), to regulate operators of CIs (i.e., critical infrastructure operators (CIOs)) and to provide for the investigation into, and response to, computer-system security threats and incidents.
The Privacy and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2024 (Cth) received Royal Assent on 10 December 2024.
These changes have been referred to as the “Tranche 1” of amendments to Australia’s privacy laws, with the majority of the changes taking effect on 11 December 2024.
The US Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute (AISI), housed within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), announced on 20 November 2024 the release of its first synthetic content guidance report, NIST AI 100 4 Reducing Risks Posed by Synthetic Content: An Overview of Technical Approaches to Digital Content Transparency. “Synthetic content” is defined in President Biden’s Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy AI as “information, such as images, videos, audio clips, and text, that has been significantly altered or generated by algorithms, including by AI.”