Financial regulators extend comment period on AI policies to July 1

Five federal regulators are giving financial institutions and the public an extra month to comment on the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning, which could be the first step toward an interagency policy on the use of AI.

The Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the National Credit Union Administration said Monday that an initial 60-day request for information had been extended to July 1.

Financial institutions had raised concerns that they needed more time to analyze and respond to “the complex technical nature and significance of the topic,” the agencies said.

“An extension of the comment period will provide additional opportunity for the public to analyze the RFI and prepare comments to address the questions posed by the agencies,” the regulators said in a press release.

Artificial intelligence is the term used to describe work in which computers are used to perform tasks typically reserved to humans, such as credit underwriting. The initial request for information, published in the Federal Register on March 31, asked for comments on the use of AI in companies’ business practices including for fraud prevention, personalization of customer services, underwriting, and other operations.

Financial regulators also are looking for comments on the appropriate governance, risk management and controls over AI as well as any challenges institutions may have in developing, adopting and managing AI.

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Regulatory reform Artificial intelligence Federal Reserve CFPB FDIC OCC
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