How Do We Need to Control AI?

In the world of Artificial Intelligence, various corporations have drafted their own code of ethics. Microsoft, for instance, has set guidelines based on values like Trustworthiness, Equity, Security, Safety, Privacy, Transparency, Responsibility, and Openness. You can learn more about Microsoft’s ethical AI strategy by watching the video through the link provided below.

To ensure that the exploration of Artificial Intelligence is not driven solely by profitability and innovation but rather balance with human rights and needs, it might require more than independent companies creating varying norms. The query here is who holds the authority to establish uniform standards, which everyone will have to follow. The regulations will presumably embody the values of those deciding them. Besides, it is critical to assess which guidelines will be enforced. Although it is not feasible to justify these intricate topics in detail here, we will briefly describe the primary concerns and review current actions taken towards them.

Recognizing Responsible AI

The definition of “responsible AI” is subjective and can vary. According to different sources, it involves being transparent, honest, and accepting responsibility. Also, it requires complying with regulations established by the government and self-made norms by the organization’s employees and customers.

When evaluating a different stance, it is crucial to acknowledge the importance of vulnerability. According to IBM, Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) refers to “a group of techniques and principles that enable human users to comprehend and trust the machine learning algorithms’ outcomes.” Ensuring that automated choices can be explained is vital, and non-prejudiced data sets or algorithms must be utilized.

When organizations create policies and regulations concerning AI, they must have precise intentions. However, several factors, along with the essential elements, contribute towards the formation of these rules, including but not limited to:

  • The debate concerning whether or not ethical norms should be coded into AIs continues.
  • If they should, which principles should AIs follow?
  • Who holds the authority to decide which set of principles should be implemented?
  • Developers are faced with the challenge of reconciling differences amongst multiple data sources.
  • The query is how the authorities can ensure that the system genuinely mirrors the stated values.

AI systems’ data must be scrutinized more carefully, particularly for any potential prejudices. As an example:

  • That is to say, who holds the responsibility for collecting this information?
  • What extent of data will be collected, and which information will be deliberately omitted?
  • Who is in charge of categorizing the data, and which methodology are they utilizing for the process?
  • How does the cost of gathering data influence the selection of data for analysis?
  • How can we ensure that there is no bias ingrained in the system?

Leadership Position: European Union

In 2023, the European Union (EU) enacted regulations aimed at providing individuals with a certain level of control over the data collected about them by internet services. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the most well-known of such laws. The EU continues to lead the way in the development of ethical guidelines for the utilization of Artificial Intelligence (AI), which may be instrumental in developing algorithms that process highly confidential information like health and financial data.

On 21 April, the European Union (EU) proposed a set of AI regulations that received mixed feedback. Brookings states that the framework lays out an intricate regulatory structure that forbids specific uses of AI, imposes strict regulations on high-risk applications, and loosely governs less dangerous AI systems. This is in contrast to the Silicon Valley ideology that governments should allow technology to evolve autonomously.

The regulation covers data governance, documentation and record-keeping, transparency, human supervision, robustness, accuracy, and security. Although the legislation concentrates more on AI systems than on the firms that develop them, the principles established constitute a significant advance toward implementing worldwide AI standards.

Alternative Strategies

Numerous other institutions, much like the European Union, are developing their own guidelines and regulations. Below are merely a handful of them.

  • IEEE.

    The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) suggests a proposal in their paper entitled “Ethically Aligned Design: A Vision for Prioritizing Human Well-being with Autonomous and Intelligent Systems”. This plan aims to prioritize human well-being in the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by emphasizing human rights, accountability, transparency, and abuse prevention.
  • OECD.

    The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has formulated principles for utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) that prioritize human well-being, uphold human rights, and comply with democratic values. These principles revolve around safety, integrity, and transparency.
  • WEF.

    The World Economic Forum (WEF) has produced a white paper entitled “AI Governance: A Holistic Approach to Implementing Ethics into AI”. The objective of this white paper is to offer recommendations on establishing an AI governance system that enables the advantages of AI to be realized while also dealing with the associated risks. The paper outlines strategies for achieving this goal, as stated in the introduction.

The United States Department of Defense has declared that it will adopt a set of ethical principles for the application of Artificial Intelligence. The framework’s five principal tenets are responsibility, fairness, traceability, dependability, and manageability.

Governments and other organizations may explore the possibility of using standards, advisory panels, ethics officers, evaluation lists, training and education, requests for self-regulation, and other similar initiatives as potential alternatives to and in conjunction with regulation.

How Crucial Is Ensuring Compliance?

The issue of whether businesses will comply with ethical AI standards and regulations established by governments and other organizations is a critical consideration. According to an essay published on Reworked, “ethical AI design is improbable to be widely adopted in the next ten years”. The article emphasizes the concerns expressed by numerous prominent figures in industry, government, and academia that AI development “will largely concentrate on profit maximization and societal control”.

Leaders and stakeholders must persevere in their attempts to define the elements of ethical AI and formulate regulations and recommendations to encourage the comprehensive implementation of these principles. Whether a company adheres to such values will be determined by its system of corporate values, while the success of those who fail to do so will be determined by consumer choice.

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