KAIST professor: AI booking request is not consent to share data
Kim Byung-pil argued at a Seoul debate event that asking an AI assistant to book a table is legally separate from allowing it to pass personal data to booking platforms.
A KAIST professor said on November 1 that telling an AI assistant to make a reservation does not by itself amount to legal consent to send personal information to outside services. Kim Byung-pil, of KAIST's College of Business and Technology Management, made the argument in a presentation at a debate event held at Yonsei University's Baekyangnuri in Seoul's Seodaemun-gu, according to ZDNet Korea.
Kim described what an assistant-based booking would involve: once AI assistants handle restaurant reservations, a user's name, phone number, party size and date and time would be passed along to booking platforms.
He argued that the two acts are separate. A request to book and consent to send personal information to anyone are legally distinct expressions of intent, he said.
He compared regulatory approaches, citing EU rules that allow processing without separate consent when it is necessary to perform a contract, and California rules that allow it within a reasonably necessary scope. Korea, by contrast, requires consent before personal information is provided to third parties.
Kim also raised the question of whether AI itself can be entrusted with the consent decision.
Quick answers
What did the KAIST professor say about AI reservations?
Kim Byung-pil argued that asking an AI assistant to make a reservation is not the same as consenting to the transfer of personal information to outside booking services.
What data would an AI booking pass on?
He said users' names, phone numbers, party size and the date and time would be sent to booking platforms.
How does Korea's rule differ from the EU and California?
Korea requires consent to provide personal information to third parties, while Kim cited EU rules permitting processing without separate consent when needed to perform a contract and California rules allowing it within a reasonably necessary scope.