(Trial) Measures for Science and Technology Ethics Reviews (Draft for Feedback)

• Authority: Chinese central government
• Jurisdiction: China
• Collections: Chinese law and policy
• Most recent activity: Proposed
• Most recent activity date: 2023-04-04

Risk subdomain coverage

Good coverage — Comprehensive governance measures or mitigations with clear procedures relating to the risk subdomain are explicitly described.

• Compromise of privacy
• AI system security vulnerabilities
• Disinformation, surveillance, and influence at scale
• Governance failure
• AI pursuing its own goals
• AI possessing dangerous capabilities
• Lack of capability or robustness
• Lack of transparency or interpretability

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the risk subdomain are described.

• Fraud, scams, and targeted manipulation
• Overreliance and unsafe use
• Loss of human agency and autonomy
• Environmental harm

All other risk subdomains had no coverage in this document.

Risk Coverage Summary

The document has good coverage of approximately 8-10 subdomains, with strong focus on governance failure (6.5), AI system security (2.2), privacy compromise (2.1), lack of transparency (7.4), goal misalignment (7.1), dangerous capabilities (7.2), and lack of robustness (7.3). Coverage is concentrated in governance structures, privacy/security, and AI safety domains, with minimal coverage of discrimination, misinformation, or socioeconomic impacts.

Sector coverage

Good coverage — Comprehensive governance measures or mitigations with clear procedures relating to the sector are explicitly described.

• Information
• Scientific Research & Development Services
• Educational Services
• Health Care & Social Assistance

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the sector are described.

• Public Administration (excl. National Security)

All other sectors had no coverage in this document.

Sectors Summary

The document governs S&T activities across multiple sectors, with explicit coverage of Scientific Research and Development Services, Health Care and Social Assistance, Educational Services, and Information sectors. It applies to institutes of higher education, scientific research institutions, medical and health institutions, and enterprises engaged in life sciences, medicine, and artificial intelligence.

Legislative Status

Hard Law

Legislative Status Summary

This is a binding regulatory instrument with mandatory language throughout ('shall', 'must'), explicit enforcement mechanisms including penalties and sanctions, and formal administrative oversight structures. The document establishes legally enforceable obligations for S&T ethics reviews with clear consequences for non-compliance.

Actors

Proposer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Ministry of Science and Technology; Chinese central government
• Summary: The document is formulated by the Ministry of Science and Technology under the authority of the Chinese central government, as indicated by references to national laws and the Ministry's responsibility for interpretation and platform construction.

Target

• Entity Types: AI_Developer, AI_Deployer, AI_Infrastructure_Provider
• Entities: Institutes of higher education; scientific research institutions; medical and health institutions; enterprises
• Summary: The document applies to organizations conducting S&T activities including AI development and deployment, specifically naming institutes of higher education, scientific research institutions, medical and health institutions, and enterprises engaged in life sciences, medicine, and artificial intelligence.

Enforcer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Ministry of Science and Technology; local oversight departments; provincial-level S&T administrative departments; relevant main industrial oversight departments; agencies with jurisdiction
• Summary: The document designates multiple levels of government agencies with enforcement authority, including the Ministry of Science and Technology, local and provincial-level departments, and industrial oversight departments with powers to impose penalties, conduct investigations, and pursue legal liability.

Monitor

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: S&T ethics (review) committees; Ministry of Science and Technology; local and relevant main industrial oversight departments; work units
• Summary: The document establishes S&T ethics review committees at work units as primary monitoring bodies, with oversight from the Ministry of Science and Technology through a national registration platform, and supervision by local and industrial oversight departments.

AI Lifecycle Stages

Lifecycle stages covered by the documents, as defined in the OECD Framework for the Classification of AI Systems

• Plan and Design
• Collect and Process Data
• Build and Use Model
• Verify and Validate
• Deploy
• Operate and Monitor

AI Lifecycle Summary

The document comprehensively covers all stages of the AI lifecycle, with particularly strong emphasis on Plan and Design (through ethical risk assessment requirements), Verify and Validate (through the detailed review procedures), and Operate and Monitor (through follow-up review requirements). It addresses the entire lifecycle from initial planning through ongoing operational monitoring.

Technical Scope

Terms relating to technical scope that are mentioned or implicitly referenced in the document

• AI Models
• AI Systems

Technical Scope Summary

The document explicitly mentions AI systems and activities, with specific focus on high-risk AI applications including algorithmic models, automated decision-making systems, and human-computer fusion systems. It does not use terms like 'frontier AI', 'general purpose AI', 'foundation models', or 'generative AI', but addresses AI broadly through references to 'artificial intelligence' and specific AI applications. No compute thresholds or open-weight model distinctions are mentioned.