Artificial Intelligence and Gambling
IAGR partner, Greo, provides IAGR members with a snapshot of regulatory approaches to online gambling worldwide. Greo is an independent knowledge translation and exchange organisation that helps organisations improve their programs, policies and practices by harnessing the power of evidence and stakeholder insight.
This month, Greo have shared a selection of research around artificial intelligence and gambling.
Regulators and operators are increasingly adopting artificial intelligence (AI) to support safer gambling. Applications that use AI techniques can analyse customer data to detect and predict behaviours that are consistent with gambling-related harms. Identification of these patterns can then prompt measures such as encouraging a person to take a break, seek help, or reduce the amount of money they are able to deposit. AI can offer harm mitigation measures without relying on customer-driven uptake, unlike other safer gambling tools such as stake limits, and time-outs or self-exclusion.
Some stakeholders are concerned about the use of AI to enable data-driven marketing, incentives, and game suggestions and the potential impact on gambling-related harms. In addition, even when AI is used to the end of reducing gambling harms, there are concerns around its use of sensitive personal data and the potential privacy issues that can arise.
How can regulators use AI to proactively and safely prevent and address gambling-related harms in an increasingly digital and data-rich landscape?
Recently published gambling research
Below is a selection of plain-language summaries of research articles that explore perspectives on and approaches to using artificial intelligence to support safer gambling:
- Applications of data science for responsible gambling: A scoping review
- A machine learning perspective on responsible gambling
- Enabling new strategies to prevent problematic online gambling: A machine learning approach for identifying at-risk online gamblers in France
- Using machine learning to retrospectively predict self-reported gambling problems in Quebec
- The use of behavioural markers of harm to profile the riskiness of online gambling products
Evidence-informed action
The following are examples of how artificial intelligence is used to support safer gambling in jurisdictions internationally. Regulators might consider these examples when creating or revising safer gambling initiatives.
Norway
SpillePuls (Play Pulse) by Norsk Tipping is a digital dialogue tool that uses real-time data to prevent and reduce at-risk or problem gambling. People receive personalized messages regarding their gambling habits, promoting reflection and encouraging moderation. Around 70 to 80% of people found the dialogue interaction useful during the pilot.
- Norsk Tipping named European Lotteries innovation champion
- Artificial intelligence helps lotteries address problem gambling
Greece
The Hellenic Gaming Commission announced a memorandum of cooperation with the Danish company Mindway AI to enhance player protection by evaluating the use of AI software and neuroscientific insights to identify at-risk gambling behaviour.
Initiatives and anti-problem gambling measures will be taken to tackle at-risk gambling behaviour and minimise the harms from gambling at both a regulatory and supervisory-audit level.
