“Artificial intelligence would be the ultimate version of Google. The ultimate search engine that would understand everything on the web,” Larry Page asserts. “It would understand exactly what you wanted, and it would give you the right thing. We’re nowhere near doing that now. However, we can get incrementally closer to that, and that is basically what we work on.”
We’re just scratching the surface of AI and its possibilities can only exponentially increase. Companies that do not want to miss out on the revolutionary future of business, must, inevitably, embrace the use of AI as a guiding light.
If you have ever come across the term “Machine Morality” and you did not deem it fit to go through it, then you probably have no interest in tech but still, the phrase should catch your attention and make you ask questions like “Is it possible for machines to be Moral?” If yes, How so?
That phrase is a concept that has kept computer scientists busy (research-wise) since the late 1970s. Its main goal is addressing the ethical concerns people have about the design and applications of AI systems and robots so yes, Machines do have morality.
Basically, ethical AI is the study of how machines and robots are equipped with Ethics. From 1970 till now, Machine ethics has expanded to include various theories on AI consciousness and rights. At the center of it all is the cogent idea that AI should never lead to impulsive decisions that could negatively impact human safety and dignity.
This has driven researchers and journalists to ask questions like “What is the inspiration behind vendors running a series of tests on whether AI products are biased or not?”
WHY IS ETHICS IMPORTANT IN AI?
Well, this is simple mathematics. As humans, we have something called “A conscience”. It is an invisible body part that sits in our heart and basically tells right from wrong.
When you see an injustice such as racism, your heart tells you something isn’t right but when you see something good and justified, it tells you something is right, so it is basically how you can tell right from wrong. This is the same with Ethics in AI. Ethics is basically the conscience of the AI algorithm.
The standards of your conscience strongly depend on a number of factors, like your background and environment. So, if you grew up in an area where thuggery was rampant, you probably wouldn’t see it as constituting a nuisance to the peace of the society.
In essence, the ethics of the AI system is dependent upon the company building it because they are responsible for the rules and regulations of the system.
ETHICAL BENCHMARKS
Based on Singularity Hub’s recent study on Nature Machine Learning, there are five ethical benchmarks regarding AI but for the purpose of clarity, we would mention the most important three, which include:
TRANSPARENCY
Product manufacturers and retailers should make sure the decision-making mechanism of an AI device is as transparent as glass to its users because it will prevent harm against its users and protect their information and fundamental human rights.
NONMALEFICENCE
The principle of nonmaleficence means “doing no harm.” The makers of AI algorithm must make sure that the decisions taken by Artificial Intelligence should not lead to physical or mental harm to users.
JUSTICE
Justice is the practice of monitoring Artificial Intelligence systems to prevent them from developing bias, as shown by Amazon’s case. It also means making sure that AI systems are made accessible to all races and genders and not a specific one, hence the word “bias” in the definition.
