Minister Smith: AI Will Strengthen, Not Replace, Public Service #TTTLiveOnline

Speaking to TTT News at an Easter event in Carapo, Minister Smith said the government is focusing on developing skills from within the public service while carefully expanding the use of new technologies.

He said the push into artificial intelligence is about people first.

“Our main focus this year and the past year has been about human capital development and how do we develop the human capital from the inside of the public service? How do we now amplify the use of technology through artificial intelligence?”

He said that work includes partnerships with some of the world’s leading technology companies and international institutions to guide the responsible use of AI.

“We partnered with OpenAI, which is one of the, if not the, premier institutions that is leading the AI drive. We partnered with companies such as Grammarly. We’re working with persons who have, we’ve done it before, the UNDP, UNESCO, we’ve done the RAM assessment. So a lot of work is being done.”

The Minister stressed that Trinidad and Tobago cannot afford to lag behind as digital government systems are expanding across the globe.

“Digital transformation is happening across the world. You go to India, you go to Estonia, you go to Denmark. These things are already happening. So we can’t be mere users of technology. We have to be active participants. And I can tell you that the Caribbean, Latin America, they’re looking at Trinidad to lead the age of digital transformation and to lead the technology wave. And as administrators of government, we’ve been actively working towards doing that.”

He added that technology must be inclusive, ensuring every citizen has access, regardless of location.

“We want every person in every community to be able to leverage the use of technology. So that is from Toco, straight on to Scarborough and Tobago, anywhere in Trinidad and Tobago, every person should have an equal opportunity to participate in what we call the digital revolution.”

Minister Smith also stressed that ethics must guide the use of artificial intelligence, warning against allowing technology to override human values.

“I always go back to the phrase that technology must not surpass our humanity. And so if you keep people at the centre of the technological wave, that is the best way you can encourage and you can safeguard persons from technology and how it will transform. People first. That is always the greatest effort that we must create in the utilisation of technology.”