While acknowledging the vast benefits of Artificial Intelligence (AI) across the spectrum and its growing importance in society today experts warned the dangers of adopting unethical AI practices which could lead to biases, discrimination and violation of privacy and human rights.
They said while AI has the potential to revolutionise the world and one’s business it could be used to cause enormous damage to the wellbeing of others.
“Those using AI be it an individual or an organisation must use data for lawful purposes and most importantly for the good of society,” Chairman of the AI Advisory Committee of Sri Lanka, Dr. Romesh Ranaweera said at the Scale up – National SME Forum 2025 last week. Stressing the importance of maintaining accuracy of data he said, non-maintenance could lead to flawed conclusions and financial losses.
Violation of privacy and human rights is a major concern in the use of AI according to industry experts as AI can be used to collect and process vast amounts of personal data without the person’s consent or knowledge.
The Government is expected to present the Personal Data Protection Bill to parliament shortly. Unintended harm is also a potential ill-effect of AI which could take place when AI is not tested properly as in the case of incorrect diagnosis or medical treatment resulting in adverse consequences to individuals and society.
“If AI tools are used for speed and not to do a task better then the purpose is lost. I would recommend someone to use AI tools to do things better than what he or she had been doing in the past,” Dr. Ranaweera said.
AI Advisory Committee member Sajini Munaweera encouraged SME entrepreneurs to shun fear and get their hands on AI which is changing the way the world thinks and behaves today.
Urging SMEs to start small she cited an instance how a small-scale food outlet operator increased sales by using AI to satisfy the taste buds of customers.
The global artificial intelligence market size was estimated at USD 279.22 billion in 2024 and is expected to reach USD 390.90 billion in 2025. The global artificial intelligence market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 35.9% from 2025 to 2030 to reach USD 1,811.75 billion by 2030.
The SME forum was hosted by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce at the Taj Samudra Hotel on Wednesday.
