New Policy Released: AI Enters the Era of Regulation, Generative AI Achieves Standardized Development

baoshi.rao

Recently, the state issued the 'Interim Measures for the Management of Generative Artificial Intelligence Services,' which came into effect on August 15, bringing AI applications under standardized management. The regulation clarifies the scope of services applicable to generating text, images, audio, video, and other content, encourages innovative applications of AI technology across industries and fields, promotes the creation of positive, healthy, and uplifting content, and explores optimized application scenarios to build an ecosystem. It also defines service standards, supervision, inspections, and legal responsibilities. This is a dual approach of support and regulation, ensuring AI thrives across industries.

Interim Measures for the Management of Generative Artificial Intelligence Services

Chapter 1: General Provisions

Article 1 These Measures are formulated to promote the healthy development and standardized application of generative artificial intelligence, safeguard national security and public interests, and protect the lawful rights and interests of citizens, legal persons, and other organizations, in accordance with the 'Cybersecurity Law of the People’s Republic of China,' the 'Data Security Law of the People’s Republic of China,' the 'Personal Information Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China,' the 'Law on Scientific and Technological Progress of the People’s Republic of China,' and other laws and administrative regulations.

Article 2 These Measures apply to services that use generative artificial intelligence technology to provide the public within the territory of the People’s Republic of China with generated text, images, audio, video, and other content (hereinafter referred to as 'generative AI services').

Where the state has separate provisions for the use of generative AI services in activities such as news publishing, film and television production, and artistic creation, those provisions shall prevail.

These Measures do not apply to industry organizations, enterprises, educational and research institutions, public cultural institutions, or relevant professional institutions that research, develop, or apply generative AI technology but do not provide generative AI services to the public within the territory of China.

Article 3 The state adheres to the principle of balancing development and security, promoting innovation alongside lawful governance, and takes effective measures to encourage the innovative development of generative AI while implementing inclusive, prudent, and tiered supervision of generative AI services.

Article 4 The provision and use of generative AI services shall comply with laws and administrative regulations, respect social morality and ethical standards, and adhere to the following provisions:

Uphold socialist core values and refrain from generating content that incites subversion of state power, undermines the socialist system, endangers national security and interests, damages the national image, incites secession or undermines national unity and social stability, promotes terrorism or extremism, incites ethnic hatred or discrimination, or disseminates violence, obscenity, pornography, or false and harmful information prohibited by laws and administrative regulations.
Take effective measures during algorithm design, training data selection, model generation and optimization, and service provision to prevent discrimination based on ethnicity, religion, nationality, region, gender, age, occupation, health status, or other factors.
Respect intellectual property rights and business ethics, protect trade secrets, and refrain from using algorithms, data, or platform advantages to engage in monopolistic or unfair competition practices.
Respect the lawful rights and interests of others, refrain from harming their physical or mental health, and avoid infringing on their rights to portrait, reputation, honor, privacy, or personal information.
Based on the characteristics of the service type, take effective measures to enhance the transparency of generative AI services and improve the accuracy and reliability of generated content.

Chapter 2: Technological Development and Governance

Article 5 Encourage the innovative application of generative AI technology across industries and fields to produce positive, healthy, and uplifting content, explore optimized application scenarios, and build an ecosystem.

Support industry organizations, enterprises, educational and research institutions, public cultural institutions, and relevant professional institutions in collaborating on technological innovation, data resource development, application transformation, and risk prevention in generative AI.

Article 6 Encourage independent innovation in foundational technologies such as generative AI algorithms, frameworks, chips, and supporting software platforms, promote international exchanges and cooperation on the basis of equality and mutual benefit, and participate in the formulation of international rules related to generative AI.

Promote the construction of generative AI infrastructure and public training data resource platforms. Facilitate the collaborative sharing of computing resources and improve their utilization efficiency. Promote the orderly opening of public data classification and grading systems to expand high-quality public training data resources. Encourage the use of secure and trustworthy chips, software, tools, computing power, and data resources.

Article 7 Providers of generative AI services (hereinafter referred to as 'providers') shall lawfully conduct training data processing activities such as pre-training and optimization training, and comply with the following provisions:

Use data and foundational models with legitimate sources.
Where intellectual property is involved, do not infringe on the intellectual property rights lawfully enjoyed by others.
Where personal information is involved, obtain individual consent or comply with other circumstances stipulated by laws and administrative regulations.
(4) Take effective measures to improve the quality of training data, enhancing its authenticity, accuracy, objectivity, and diversity.
(5) Other relevant provisions of laws and administrative regulations such as the Cybersecurity Law of the People's Republic of China, the Data Security Law of the People's Republic of China, the Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, and relevant regulatory requirements from competent authorities.
Article 8: During the research and development of generative AI technology, providers must establish clear, specific, and operable annotation rules that comply with these regulations; conduct quality assessments of data annotations, verifying the accuracy of annotated content through sampling; provide necessary training to annotators to enhance legal awareness and supervise their annotation work.
Chapter 3: Service Standards
Article 9: Providers shall bear the responsibilities of online information content producers in accordance with the law and fulfill obligations for network information security. Where personal information is involved, they shall bear the responsibilities of personal information processors and fulfill personal information protection obligations.
Providers shall enter into service agreements with users of their generative AI services (hereinafter referred to as users), clearly defining the rights and obligations of both parties.
Article 10: Providers shall clearly define and disclose the applicable groups, scenarios, and purposes of their services, guide users to scientifically and rationally understand and legally use generative AI technology, and take effective measures to prevent underage users from excessive reliance or addiction to generative AI services.
Article 11: Providers shall fulfill their obligations to protect users' input information and usage records in accordance with the law, refrain from collecting unnecessary personal information, illegally retaining input information and usage records that can identify users, or illegally providing such information to others.
Providers shall promptly and lawfully handle individuals' requests to access, copy, correct, supplement, or delete their personal information.
Article 12: Providers shall label generated content such as images and videos in accordance with the "Regulations on the Management of Deep Synthesis in Internet Information Services."
Article 13: Providers shall ensure safe, stable, and continuous service during operation to guarantee normal user access.
Article 14: Upon discovering illegal content, providers shall promptly take measures such as stopping generation, transmission, or removal, implement corrective actions like model optimization training, and report to relevant authorities.
If providers find users engaging in illegal activities using generative AI services, they shall take actions such as warnings, functional restrictions, or service suspension/termination in accordance with laws and agreements, preserve relevant records, and report to authorities.
Article 15: Providers shall establish sound complaint and reporting mechanisms, set up accessible channels, disclose handling procedures and response timelines, and promptly address and respond to public complaints.
Chapter 4: Supervision and Legal Responsibilities
Article 16: Departments such as cyberspace administration, development and reform, education, science and technology, industry and information technology, public security, broadcasting, and press and publication shall strengthen the management of generative AI services in accordance with their respective duties.
National authorities shall improve scientific regulatory approaches suited to the characteristics of generative AI technology and its applications across industries, formulating corresponding classification and tiered regulatory rules or guidelines.
Article 17: Providers offering generative AI services with public opinion attributes or social mobilization capabilities shall conduct security assessments per national regulations and comply with the "Regulations on the Management of Algorithm Recommendations in Internet Information Services" for algorithm filing and modification procedures.
Article 18: Users who find generative AI services non-compliant with laws, regulations, or these rules have the right to complain or report to relevant authorities.
Article 19: Relevant authorities shall conduct supervision and inspections of generative AI services as per their duties, and providers shall cooperate by explaining training data sources, scale, types, annotation rules, and algorithm mechanisms, providing necessary technical and data support.
Institutions and personnel involved in security assessments and supervision shall keep state secrets, trade secrets, personal privacy, and information confidential, without unauthorized disclosure.
Article 20: For non-compliant generative AI services originating overseas and provided within China, the national cyberspace administration shall notify relevant agencies to take technical or other necessary measures.
Article 21: Providers violating these regulations shall be penalized under laws such as the Cybersecurity Law, Data Security Law, Personal Information Protection Law, and Science and Technology Progress Law. Where no legal provisions exist, authorities may issue warnings, reprimands, or corrective orders; refusal or severe cases may result in service suspension. Violations of public security shall incur administrative penalties; criminal acts shall be prosecuted.

Chapter V Supplementary Provisions

Article 22 The meanings of the following terms in these Measures are:

Generative AI technology refers to models and related technologies capable of generating content such as text, images, audio, and video.
Generative AI service providers refer to organizations or individuals that utilize generative AI technology to provide generative AI services (including through programmable interfaces or other means).
Generative AI service users refer to organizations or individuals that use generative AI services to generate content.

Article 23 Where laws or administrative regulations require obtaining relevant administrative licenses for providing generative AI services, providers shall obtain such licenses in accordance with the law.

Foreign investment in generative AI services shall comply with the provisions of relevant laws and administrative regulations on foreign investment.

Article 24 These Measures shall come into effect on August 15, 2023.