The UK's tax authority is turning to AI to help identify fraud - Engadget

"HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the UK's tax authority, has announced a 10-year deal with British tech firm Quantexa to use AI for detecting fraud and tax return errors. The has reported that the multi-year agreement will cost the UK government £175 million ($234 million). Under the partnership, Quantexa will combine data that the HMRC has collected with other sources to help it spot incidents of fraud, as well as to help it fix unintentional errors."

"It will also assist HMRC with its customer service needs and identify companies or individuals trying to hide fraudulent activities. In addition, the HMRC will use its technology to track down legitimate payments made by taxpayers under the wrong reference number. Quantexa, founded in London back in 2016, develops AI apps and tools for data analytics and decision-making."

"While the HMRC will use its technology to detect irregularities in tax filings and payments, the company told the BBC that its findings will still be checked by people and that its technology was made to "support human decision-making, not replace it." Hopefully, that means taxpayers won't have to face false accusations of fraud based on the findings by the company's AI."

""In government environments, AI cannot operate as a black box," Quantexa chief executive Vishal Marria told the BBC. "Decisions need to be transparent, auditable, and explainable, particularly in areas affecting citizens directly." Marria also said that Quantexa will "never take HMRC data away from the HMRC environment" to ensure the data would remain secure."

HM Revenue & Customs has announced a 10-year agreement with Quantexa to use AI for detecting fraud and tax return errors. The deal will cost the UK government £175 million. Quantexa will combine HMRC-collected data with other sources to identify fraudulent activity and to help correct unintentional errors. The partnership will also support customer service and help locate legitimate payments made using the wrong reference number. Quantexa develops AI tools for data analytics and decision-making and is also working with Zurich Insurance Group to improve fraud detection. Quantexa states that its findings will be checked by people and that the technology is designed to support human decision-making rather than replace it. It also says AI cannot operate as a black box in government settings and must be transparent, auditable, and explainable.

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