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Brazil's AI Strategy 2021 (EBIA) aims to shape the country's participation in AI development while emphasizing ethical and responsible use. The strategy draws inspiration from the OECD's AI framework.
Key Components of the Strategy:
Research and Development: EBIA seeks to attract, retain, and cultivate AI talent both domestically and internationally. This includes providing academic funding, establishing scholarship programs, and creating specialized master's and doctoral programs in AI. Additionally, the strategy envisions the establishment of new research centers focused on fundamental and applied AI research.
Skills Development and Future Workforce: To prepare for the future labor market, EBIA emphasizes skill development. Initiatives include investing in lifelong education and cultivating digital skills to help individuals thrive in a constantly changing job market.
Industrialization and AI: A strategic priority is to encourage the private sector to adopt AI technologies. This includes investments in critical sectors, financial support for AI startups and SMEs, and strategies to nurture AI clusters within Brazil's business environment.
Ethical Standards for AI: EBIA highlights the importance of ethical AI development and use. It advocates for the establishment of committees, advisory groups, or working groups responsible for developing AI regulations and standards. Additionally, the strategy allocates funding for research and pilot projects aimed at creating transparent and explainable AI systems.
Data Governance and Digital Infrastructure: Collaborative data governance is central to EBIA. Cooperation involving open data, shared AI software development platforms, and partnerships around datasets is essential. Moreover, the strategy commits to creating secure testing environments to protect citizens' rights when interacting with AI.
AI in Government: EBIA envisions leveraging AI to enhance government efficiency, service delivery, and public administration. Pilot projects are proposed to utilize AI capabilities for these purposes.
AI for Social Welfare: EBIA aims to promote social welfare through AI applications, stimulating economic and cultural growth, and advancing inclusivity.
Brazil's AI strategy, as proposed by EBIA, demonstrates a comprehensive and forward-looking approach to AI development. This strategy aligns with international best practices while addressing Brazil's unique needs and opportunities, ensuring that AI can promote social progress and economic growth, all firmly rooted in ethical foundations.
By considering areas such as research and development, industrialization, ethical standards, data governance, government applications, and social welfare, EBIA lays a solid foundation for Brazil's AI future.
Key Participants
Although Brazil's 2018 Digital Transformation Strategy recognized the importance of AI, it did not include specific provisions for the development and investment in the country's AI capabilities. The strategy primarily focused on broader digital investments that would facilitate AI development. The AI Strategy (EBIA) released in 2021 emphasized AI innovation, research and development (R&D), and skills development. As part of this strategy, Brazil also invested $12 million to establish a National AI Innovation Network, a partnership of various research centers supporting new AI applications and startup development.
The Brazilian government is also promoting public-private partnerships to support the establishment of AI-focused startups. As a leader in technology investment in Latin America, Brazil's private sector is rapidly advancing AI applications across various industries, including finance, banking, health, and agriculture. In 2020, over half of the $4 billion technology investments in the region were concentrated in Brazil ($2.385 billion).
Brazil has positioned itself as a hub for tech startups, which account for more than 5.6% of the country’s GDP. São Paulo hosts over 2,700 tech startups, making it a technological center in the region. Brazil also leads in agritech, with 51% of Latin America's agritech startups originating from the country between 2005 and 2018. The agricultural fintech startup Traive raised $17 million in venture capital in 2021, marking the largest amount raised by a Brazilian agritech company.
In the financial sector, since its founding in 2016, the anti-fraud solutions provider Idwall has secured over $54 million in investment. Nubank, which went public in December 2021, reached a valuation of $45 billion post-IPO, although this valuation has since declined.
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