The dawn of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has brought with it a myriad of innovations, transforming everything from healthcare to education. However, as with any groundbreaking technology, AI requires us to pause and examine ourselves and the world around us by our values.
Consideration of AI’s ethical implications are due to the characteristics of the technology itself – its ability to learn, adapt, and make decisions independently as well as nuanced questions of data aggregation and source attribution. It is now necessary to do a deep reexamination of ethics as a concept in the context of technology, especially regarding bias, privacy, accountability, and societal impact.
Problems of Decision Making
At the heart of ethical AI lies the problem of decision-making. AI systems based on Large Language Models (LLMs), have the capacity to evolve beyond their initial programming. This raises questions of accountability – who is responsible when an AI makes a harmful decision?
The answer is not straightforward, responsibility can be diffused across developers, the AI itself and in the case of reinforcement learning by human feedback (RLHF) as used in OpenAI’s ubiquitous tools even the users of the AI themselves.
AI systems learn from data, and if this data reflects existing biases, the AI’s decisions will perpetuate these biases. We have seen this particular concern in many headlines recently and is particularly concerning in areas like hiring, criminal justice, and lending, where biased AI can have real-world, harmful consequences on individuals and communities.
When thinking about LLMs and the data included within them, I am often reminded of the old database adage, Garbage in, Garbage Out (GIGO), only with AI that can be our own prejudices and partiality.
Privacy Concerns
There are privacy concerns as well. Because AI’s efficacy often depends on access to vast amounts of data, it can include sensitive personal information. This makes balancing the benefits of AI with the right to privacy a delicate and critical task.
Finally, the impact of AI on job loss is a pressing concern. We concede that AI poses the risk of significant job displacement. How we address this potential shift in the labor market is an ethical question as much as an economic one.
Complexities of AI Landscape
Given the complexity of the AI landscape, the role of initiatives like Parallax Futures is invaluable. Parallax Futures aims to inspire positive futures by cultivating a new kind of innovator: the Conceptual Technologist. These individuals blend technical expertise with creative and conceptual thinking, bridging gaps between ideas, culture, and technology.
They are not just technologists; they are visionaries who grasp the broader societal implications of technological advancements. By emphasizing multi-dimensional diversity as key to talent pools, Parallax Futures acknowledges that innovation thrives on diverse perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds, essential in combating homogeneous ideas and unexpected biases.
Exploring Key Concepts
Conceptual Technologists play a pivotal role in ethical AI. They are tasked with the exploration of key concepts such as truth, responsibility, and social good. By understanding that these concepts were invented by their histories, conceptual technologists can ultimately redefine these concepts for today. Starting from a consistent understanding of humanity’s values, Conceptual Technologists can be the foundation for envisioning and developing ethical AI.
Their work involves ensuring AI systems are fair, unbiased, and respectful of privacy. They are also at the forefront of exploring how AI impacts jobs, advocating for responsible and equitable approaches to technological advancement.
Crucial to the success of Conceptual Technologists is the often-overlooked aspect of community-building. By creating a network for these innovators to connect, share, and collaborate, Parallax Futures fosters a collective ethos of responsibility and creativity.
This communal approach is vital in ensuring the development of AI technologies is not only technologically advanced but also ethically sound and holistically beneficial. Community aligned commitment to addressing humanity’s greatest problems through diverse Conceptual Technologists is a model for how we should approach AI’s future.
Fraught with Challenges
The journey towards ethical AI is complex and fraught with challenges. However, it is a necessary one. As AI continues to evolve and integrate into every facet of our lives, the ethical considerations it brings cannot be ignored. Organizations like Parallax Futures, and the role of Conceptual Technologists they foster, are critical in navigating this new terrain.
They ensure that as we harness the power of AI, we do so responsibly, in a way that respects human dignity, promotes fairness, and benefits all humans and the worlds we inhabit and co-create with nature and technology.
In the end, the future of AI should be shaped not only by the capabilities of the technology but also by the values we define and uplift as a society. Ethical AI is not just a technical goal; it is a moral imperative. As we stand at the crossroads of this technological revolution, the choices we make, the jobs we create and the concepts we hold will define the trajectory of our future.
Kim Carson, CEO and Founder at parallaxfutures.org. She’s passionate about enabling teams of creatives, technology leaders, and innovators with the skills, mindset, and network to tackle the complex and evolving challenges of tomorrow. Prior to Parallax Futures, Kim enjoyed a wide variety of leadership positions in both academia and the technology sectors. She served as the Director of UCSF’s first ever strategic planning process; was program executive for a $60M higher education analytics engagement; was the go-to-market leader for IBM’s Watson Education; and a top business development executive for intellectual property licensing at IBM’s 12 global research labs.
