Mississippi House adopts definition of AI

The Mississippi House of Representatives passed a measure defining artificial intelligence on Wednesday. House Bill 1723 passed by a vote of 87 to 22. The measure provides clarity to an industry that Mississippi hopes to be a leader in. The measure defines AI as a machine-based system that can, for a given set of human-defined objectives, make predictions, recommendations, or decisions influencing real or virtual environments. It states that artificial intelligence systems use machine- and human-based inputs to perceive real and virtual environments, abstract such perceptions into models through analysis in an automated manner, and use model inference to formulate options for information or action. The definition was the result of a Legislative AI task force that met several times over the summer with guidance from other state and federal policies, said House Technology Chairperson Jill Ford, a Republican. The legislation does not mandate, restrict, or regulate the industry, Ford said. State Rep. Dan Eubanks, a Republican, asked why the state is defining AI if it is not going to regulate the industry. Ford responded that the definition is for future law to codify this into law like the federal government and to establish a baseline for any AI legislation. She said it will not conflict with White House orders or federal legislation. State Rep. Jansen Owen, a Republican, asked whether Mississippi has concern about defining AI before it is fully defined itself. Ford said the state feels it is necessary to codify this into law and can go back to tweak it in the future. State Rep. Daryl Porter, a Democrat, questioned the impact the bill will have on businesses looking to come to Mississippi. Ford said she does not see the definition as a problem in the state's efforts to attract AI companies or data centers. The bill now heads to the Senate for their consideration.