Ukraine is moving to a new stage in shaping the artificial intelligence market—a period of responsible self-regulation when business independently defines and implements ethical standards in its own products. DroneUA became a participant in the first self-regulatory organization (SRO) in the AI field—an initiative that united 14 leading technology companies around the principles of safe and ethical use of AI solutions, who became signatories of the Memorandum on Self-Regulation in the Field of Artificial Intelligence. The association also includes: Grammarly,MacPaw, LetsData, WINSTARS.AI, YouScan.io, Preply, Uklon, SoftServe, Valtech, Gametree.me, ЛУН, Yieldy, EVE.calls. Thus, the companies have committed to developing innovative products in compliance with the principles of safe use of AI declared in the Voluntary Code of Conduct.
The secretariat of the SRO has been designated as the Center for Democracy and Rule of Law and the IT Ukraine Association.
Self-regulation in the AI field provides for the voluntary adoption by companies of standards of transparent, safe, and ethical technology development, which helps to strengthen trust in the Ukrainian technology sector from international partners, investors, and civil society. The creation of the organization is part of a soft approach to AI regulation (“bottom-up”) chosen by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine. This approach allows businesses to adapt to future European legislative norms while maintaining the flexibility of innovation.
“The launch of the self-regulation process and the creation of a self-regulatory organization is a bold step by Ukrainian business toward the development of truly ethical use of artificial intelligence. Ukraine once again demonstrates itself as a pioneer in this field. The Center for Democracy and Rule of Law is pleased, together with the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the AI Committee, to be initiators of this process. Currently, CEDEM performs the functions of its secretariat. The creation of the self-regulatory organization and the start of the self-regulation process once again proves that it is Ukrainian companies that are able to set the tone for the responsible development of technologies in the world”,— said Olha Petriv, a lawyer specializing in artificial intelligence at CEDEM.
Among the goals of the self-regulatory organization:
- promoting ethical and responsible use of AI in business and the public sector;
- implementing the provisions of the Code in the actual practices of companies;
- monitoring compliance with the principles and regular reporting;
- supporting innovation and sharing experience among market participants.
The report was developed by the companies participating in the SRO, together with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, the Center for Democracy and Rule of Law, and the IT Ukraine Association. At least once a year, companies will submit a public report describing how ethical principles are integrated into the processes of developing, implementing, and using AI products. This approach makes it possible to move from declarations to verifiable actions and creates a transparency mechanism in interaction between business, society, and the state.
“This initiative is an example of how the Ukrainian IT community is ready to take responsibility for the development of artificial intelligence. We at the IT Ukraine Association are happy to join the process as part of the Secretariat and to support the creation of ethical and clear rules in this dynamic field. We believe that self-regulation will become a strong foundation for trust, development, and international partnership in the AI field”,— commented Maria Shevchuk, Executive Director of the IT Ukraine Association.
Self-regulation will become the basis for synchronizing the national regulatory framework with EU standards, which is also part of Ukraine’s European integration. In June 2024, the Ministry of Digital Transformation presented the White Paper on AI Regulation. The implementation of self-regulation is the first step on this path.
“In Ukraine, the period of AI self-regulation is ongoing: companies independently form and implement ethical standards in their products. As a state, we help them through recommendations, and later we will scale the practices developed by business to the entire market. Through self-regulation, companies can be the first to adapt the best standards to AI products and thereby strengthen the trust of investors, partners, and clients”,— said Oleksandr Bornyakov, Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation for European Integration.
For DroneUA, participation in the self-regulatory organization is a logical step in the development of an ecosystem of innovative solutions that combine unmanned technologies, robotics, and artificial intelligence. Transparent and ethical standards of AI use are an important factor in shaping the two-way openness expected by international partners and users, as well as a real opportunity to consolidate Ukraine’s reputation as a trusted source of innovation. This is not only about responsibility but also about creating the conditions for sustainable scaling of Ukrainian technologies worldwide.
