CHAPTER 1:  Introduction.- Part I. Conceptual framework.- CHAPTER 2. Economic Analysis of Law .- CHAPTER 3. The Case for Regulatory Intervention and its Limits.- CHAPTER 4. Introduction to the Generative Artificial Intelligence Systems.- Part II. Generative Artificial Intelligence and Key Regulatory Questions.- CHAPTER 5. What can get wrong?.- CHAPTER 6. Key Regulatory Principles and Current Regulatory Approaches.- CHAPTER 7. Towards an Optimal Regulator: Critical Assessment of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act.- Epilogue.

“AI is guaranteed to change nearly every aspect of our lives, but predicting how it will do so and determining what role law and regulation should play involve huge uncertainty.  Kovac gives us an insightful roadmap, using the tools of law and economics, to our bewildering future.  In the process, he also provides a comprehensive and necessary guide to understanding the regulatory and legal challenges we will face in the very near future.”

—Jonathan Klick, Charles A. Heimbold, Jr. Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania and Erasmus Chair of Empirical Legal Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam

This book takes a comparative law and economics approach to explore the role of public and private actors in regulating generative artificial intelligence. The book provides an introduction and context for the creation of new generative AI technologies, now understood to be the chief goal of the leading AI companies. As autonomous ‘super-intelligences’, these technologies are still an unknown entity which nevertheless have profound implications for liberal democracy, consumer choice mechanisms, mutual trust, and political legitimacy.

This book explores the deep challenges posed for lawmakers and how we can achieve an optimal form of regulation and governance of such unreliable technologies. Chapters investigate possible hybrid modes of regulation, such as a co-regulatory approach between private AI companies and public actors in addressing the issue of misinformation spread. It also explores mixed types of regulation toward research on new forms of AI, arguing that different levels of systemic risk posed by different technologies must be accounted for. Different contemporary and historical contexts for the regulation of unprecedented technical innovation are also considered, and new suggestions for policy are presented. This book is a timely resource which will be of interest to researchers and practitioners in economic governance, law and regulation, artificial intelligence, and comparative law.

Mitja Kovač is full time Professor of Civil and Commercial Law at the University of Ljubljana, School of Economics and Business, Ljubljana, Slovenia. He is also a visiting lecturer at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands, at University of Ghent, Belgium, at the ISM University of Management and Economics in Vilnius, Lithuania, and at University of Vienna, Austria. He publishes in the fields of comparative contract law and economics, new institutional economics, consumer protection, contract theory and competition law and economics.

“AI is guaranteed to change nearly every aspect of our lives, but predicting how it will do so and determining what role law and regulation should play involve huge uncertainty.  Kovac gives us an insightful roadmap, using the tools of law and economics, to our bewildering future.  In the process, he also provides a comprehensive and necessary guide to understanding the regulatory and legal challenges we will face in the very near future.” (Jonathan Klick, Charles A. Heimbold, Jr. Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania and Erasmus Chair of Empirical Legal Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam)

“This timely book presents in an accessible manner how the law and economics literature on regulation and tort law can be applied to the rapidly developing domain of generative AI. What I consider the main strength of the book is that it is comprehensive in its choice of topics, yet relatively short and to the point, while it is written for a broad audience not necessarily trained in economics or law and technology.” (Niels J. Philipsen, Professor, Erasmus University Rotterdam and Maastricht University, The Netherlands)

“Generative Artificial Intelligence brims with creativity and offers a peak behind the door of a future that is both emphatically exciting and comprehensively terrifying.” (Ben Depoorter, Professor, University of California, Hastings College of Law, USA)

“This book is an essential read for anyone involved in the regulation of AI. In a world where AI is rapidly transforming every aspect of our lives, the need for a thoughtful, preemptive regulatory framework has never been more urgent. Professor Kovač's book offers a comprehensive analysis of the unprecedented challenges posed by generative AI and autonomous systems, highlighting the potential hazards that accompany their development and integration into society. With an exceptional blend of law, economics, and AI technology insights, Professor Kovač analyses the complexities of regulating AI, making a compelling case for proactive legal measures to mitigate risks while fostering innovation.” (Cristina Poncibò, Professor of Comparative Private Law, Department of Law, University of Turin)