AI will drive drug approval, but humans will still be in charge

When it comes to building or manufacturing something, there is usually paperwork involved.

Now politicians have a new favorite weapon in their centuries-old battle against bureaucracy: artificial intelligence (AI).

This year’s federal budget was chock-full of examples of how the government plans to use new technology to save $10.2 billion in regulatory costs.

Two headline examples were the use of AI to accelerate medical and environmental approvals.

Despite promises of efficiency, the budget contained only an overview of the precise role AI will play in these government processes and associated security measures.

How is AI used to reduce bureaucracy?

The idea of ​​leaving part of the process of approving medicines or housing plans to machines could raise concerns about whether we can trust them with this responsibility.

As far as we know, the government does not delegate decision-making to AI. Rather, it is used to facilitate paperwork related to these decisions.

The medicine…