AI and trust: Navigating the next frontier with Wipro's Ivana Bartoletti

Trust remains the cornerstone for the widespread adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the current times. Ivana Bartoletti, Chief Privacy and AI Governance Officer at Wipro and influential voice in AI ethics spoke with us about the critical role businesses play in establishing trustworthy AI and the balance between regulation and innovation.

Bartoletti recently participated in the Paris AI Summit, where she witnessed firsthand discussions that went beyond conventional compliance and regulations. “It was an interesting summit because compared to the other ones - for example, compared to the previous summits - there was a lot of discussions around sustainability and privacy,” Bartoletti said, reflecting on her experience in Paris. She particularly highlighted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emphasis on inclusivity. “It was really interesting to hear your Prime Minister’s vision for inclusive AI, which I thought was very good,” she added.

Ensuring trustworthiness in AI

As AI becomes integral to daily operations, Bartoletti emphasises that transparency must underpin all AI tools. “If you’re deploying an AI tool, consumers need to know they are talking to an AI and not talking to a human, how they can challenge an output made by a machine, and how they can question it,” she advised.

Bartoletti strongly advocates that privacy and security must be incorporated by design. “Privacy by default and by design, security by design or by default, they’re actually a must if companies want to survive,” she explained. Companies, she says, must carry out rigorous due diligence, ensuring they can account for AI’s decisions, and preventing potential harms such as AI-generated misinformation or even inappropriate responses.

India’s role in responsible AI governance

Speaking about India’s proactive stance on AI governance, Bartoletti praised India’s responsible innovation strategy. She acknowledged India’s leadership as a key voice advocating global inclusivity in AI benefits. “India is making an essential point, which is inclusivity in the sense that AI cannot just benefit the global north. It has to respect the diversity, the ethics of the countries in which it operates,” she noted.

Bartoletti pointed to initiatives such as India’s commitment to academia and local AI innovation challenges as significant steps toward tackling region-specific issues. “The sort of investment to strengthen AI infrastructure and drive sustainable and responsible growth—this is good. India’s role is important because it is the largest country in the world, and it has a huge skill set in AI,” she said.

Regulation vs. Self-Governance: Striking the Right Balance

When asked about the ideal balance between regulatory frameworks and industry-led self-governance, Bartoletti clarified a common misconception: “AI is already regulated. It’s not as if AI exists in a legal vacuum. It already exists in a world with existing regulations.”

Bartoletti elaborated that governance should be sector-specific and tailored. She cited financial services as an example: “Financial services is an extremely regulated industry. Why wouldn’t existing regulations apply to AI?” She emphasised that many governance principles are technologically agnostic and, therefore universally applicable across sectors, while some aspects indeed require sector-specific frameworks.

Trends Shaping the Future of AI Governance

Looking ahead, Bartoletti highlighted two critical areas for businesses and policymakers - transparency and skills development. “Businesses need to ensure they upskill their teams as much as possible. There are still missing skills, such as privacy engineering and leveraging technology to build transparency and auditability,” she said.

Bartoletti also stressed the need for businesses to be proactive about transparency, particularly as personal data remains an immense source of power. She believes companies bear the responsibility to rectify the imbalance caused by data-driven power dynamics. “Personal data and information about people is a source of enormous power, and this power imbalance must be balanced by transparency,” she asserted.

In closing, Bartoletti underscored the importance of trust and transparency in AI deployment. She argues these factors are not optional - they’re foundational. “Addressing these issues is not an option. It’s really not an option if you want to be competitive in the market and want people to use your products.”

As India prepares to host the next Global AI summit, Bartoletti’s insights serve as valuable guidance for businesses and policymakers navigating the complexities of ethical AI governance in the coming years.