The government is looking for ways to implement artificial intelligence in the economy

In order to introduce artificial intelligence (AI) into industries, the White House may need to resort to business coercion measures or provide them with really attractive benefits. Such a conclusion could be drawn from the speeches of officials and experts at the specialized sessions of the SPIEF. Thus, the Ministry of Economy reported that the use of AI could become a condition for access to state support in agriculture, industry, transport and tourism. The authorities are also stimulating the introduction of AI with tax incentives, but as the Ministry of Digital Development reported, so far almost no one has taken advantage of them.

At the SPIEF session “Artificial Intelligence: the Foundation of the Economy of the Future and a Beacon of Russian Technological Sovereignty,” Economics Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said that the government is considering obliging companies to use AI when receiving industry support measures. In particular, we are talking about such areas as the agro-industrial complex, industry, transport, and tourism. So the department intends to fulfill the instructions of Vladimir Putin to link the provision of subsidies from the federal budget with the obligation of their recipients to use modern technologies.

The interest of the authorities in AI technology is due, among other things, to the fact that its use, by raising labor productivity (for example, in the field of information security or public services), helps to solve the problem of staff shortages. According to the minister, in some industries, business is already implementing AI, but there are also areas where this is necessary, but not yet happening. Earlier, in the report of ANO Tsifrovaya ekonomika, it was reported that in Russia the average level of implementation of AI solutions in 2021 was 21%, while the global level was 54%. Later it was stated that in 2024 this indicator should increase in the Russian Federation to at least 50%. As Maksut Shadayev, head of the Ministry of Digital Development, noted at the session, AI will be introduced in public administration, and greater potential for technology will be in the areas of healthcare and education.

From 2023, companies can reduce income tax payments when purchasing AI solutions – such expenses are taken into account when determining the tax base with an increased coefficient (1.5 of actual costs). However, as Maksut Shadayev admitted at the forum, the benefit did not become popular – according to the minister, practically no one took advantage of it. According to SUEK CEO Maxim Basov, this is due to the presence of other business interests. “I think that this is not a matter of money, but of the focus and competencies of the company, the business has evolved in a different environment,” he said. According to him, state-owned companies are the leaders in innovation in the Russian Federation, because the government sets the appropriate tasks for them. The heads of private companies often do not have a focus on research and development, Maxim Basov believes.

Another hurdle to AI adoption is the unresolved issue of data for machine learning. The State Duma has long been considering amendments to the law “On Personal Data”, which regulate the circulation of anonymized information necessary for this process. In the first reading, the draft was adopted back in February 2021, Maksut Shadayev expects that it will be finally approved during the ending spring session.

According to the minister, the approach of the Russian state to the issue of data regulation is closer to the Chinese one. “We are similar because China believes that all data belongs to the state by default,” Maksut Shadayev explained. According to him, the adoption of the amendments currently in the State Duma will actually mean that depersonalized data will become a strategic resource for the development of AI technology.

Venera Petrova