PANEL SESSIONS I MONDAY JUNE 25 2018 4.45 PM – 6.15 PM

Location: CPD-LG.39

  • LAW OF THE DIGITAL AGE
    The global and digital life is a challenge for every regulator worldwide: with the wide use of robotics, artificial intelligence and blockchain technology, the world is now changing faster than the law could give an adequate reaction. This is effecting many spheres of life: from governmental offices to private workplaces, from the procurement process to the billing and paying methods. The panel is dealing with the regulatory issues of the modern technology: how the robotics and artificial intelligence effects the labour law, and public servants’ positions. The new technologies are effecting the purchasing processes, so the public procurement needs to be revised as well. And overall: the fascinating phenomena of blochchain technology can possibly – in the future – change our way of thinking on contracts. In which manner are smart contracts “smarter“ than others?
  • Labour law for the robots?
    Henry Ford II, and the leader of the automobile workers union, Walter Reuther, both saw many examples of advanced machinery operating at the firm. The words they exchanged brilliantly encapsulated the paradox of automation: “Henry Ford II: Walter, how are you going to get those robots to pay your union dues? Walter Reuther: Henry, how are you going to get them to buy your cars?“ The robots are changing the word of the labour market now for decades. There is a dispute between the legal specialists if there will be factories in 10 years, but nobody doubts that there won’t be any in 50 years. The paper is analyzing the way of how robotics has changed the power and role of human work in the industry, and also want to seek for a soothing answer for the question: what kind of work would our children do, if any?
  • Digitalisation in Hungarian elections
    The digital word is effecting the people’s everyday life and also their political life. In the election process, several “e-questions“ arise: getting relevant information (or sometimes disinformation…?), e-voting, e-registration in the electoral roll. In a certain case from a current Hungarian practice in the paper I highlight the relevance of data protection and controll in the election system.
  • Privacy issues of artificial intelligence
    Artificial intelligence applications and Big Data technologies raise significant questions in the area of privacy. Users tend to disregard the fact that many databases they have provided their personal data to, are interconnected or are being harvested by data brokers. In this new era of Digital Age the privacy of citizens should be protected not from the government, but from private entities that they have provided their data voluntarily to.
  • Public procurement in a “21st century“-way: how new technologies may change public spending?
    According to EU statistics governments and other public authorities are spending about 16% of the GDP through public procurement contracts. This way the regulation of the public procurement process highly effects the business environment, and can work as a catalysis for sustainable, eco-friendly and financially rational supply. This system is however a static one: stability is a main principle of this area. The digital age however shows a mirror of the obstacles: while getting things and services is becoming easier every day, winning in a public procurement is getting harder and slower. This is unsustainable: the States and the Governments should be the first ones to use new technologies for optimizing the public spending for everyone’s benefit. The paper examines how the blockchain technology could be used in the public procurement system – possibly internationally.