Oliver sets up AI Council as MPs bemoan Govt inaction

British MPs might be urging the UK Government to introduce artificial intelligence legislation or risk falling behind in the race for regulation, but in-housing specialist Oliver is taking matters into its own hands by setting up a global initiative as part of its self-governance policy.

The Oliver AI Council consists of leaders from within the agency as well as key clients and industry experts to ensure the rounded and responsible use of AI as it continues its rapid evolution.

The Council will meet monthly to review the latest industry developments from a technology, ethics, marketing and talent perspective. Outputs from the Council will form the basis of Oliver’s approach to how the agency’s people and clients use AI.

As part of the process, the Council will review of recent case studies and learnings to encourage education and collaboration for future policies; hold roundtable discussions on topical issues and market developments; review impacted policies, guidelines, and guidance for amendment; and publish findings to support the broader industry on its AI journey, from the frontlines of adoption.

The initiative is spearheaded by a seven-strong global Oliver team that includes Oliver and Inside Ideas Group (IIG) founder and chief executive Simon Martin; IIG chief executive officer for global clients Richard Stainer; Oliver global COO Jason Bailis,; Oliver and IIG global chief creative officer Rodrigo Sobral; IIG UK global head of production Peter van Jaarsveld; UK global chief strategy officer Rachel Hatton; and UK group chief executive Amina Folarin. Clients and industry figures also form part of the Council.

Martin said: “The Oliver AI Council was born from the belief that to get AI right, we need to be very conscious of how we use this technology in its infancy to better support our clients as the technology matures.

“With the Council in place, we are primed to guide our clients on their AI journeys, helping them understand how AI impacts their world, what the use cases could be and how to pilot the technology at every level of operation. We intend to publish insights and whatever we learn from the Council industry-wide so it can be used for the good of all.”

Oliver’s current AI suite encompasses Pencil Pro, an enterprise-level generative AI product, created to meet the needs of global brands which is already being used by Unilever and Bayer.

The group also has an AI briefing tool, which enables briefing from a portal, email, WhatsApp or even a napkin. The tool learns from previous briefs and work, then automatically generates briefs for Oliver teams within the agency’s dashboard OMG (Oliver Marketing Gateway). The Oliver AI Chat tool is its brand and output format trained chat, enabling fast, accurate and safe use of Open AI API 4 integrated into OMG.

Peter van Jaarsveld added: “There are endless applications for AI technology, but among that boundless potential there is also considerable risk. AI presents a new frontier of opportunity for brands, but in the absence of official legislation, it’s down to them and their agency partners to embrace AI safely and set-up a shared framework for responsible use.”

The MPs’ intervention comes ahead of Government’s Global AI Safety Summit in November, designed to address the global threats to democracy posed by the tech, including a focus on topics such as cybersecurity and misinformation.

With the EU continuing to push its AI Act – which will establish requirements for both providers and users dependent on the level of risk posed by AI – and the US issuing a blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights that will act as a guide to help protect people from these threats, the MPs claim the UK is falling behind.

This comes as the UK’s AI whitepaper, which was released in March, was noted as having ‘significant gaps’, leaving most of the responsibility with regulators, according to research from Ada Lovelace.