The Business Times, Singapore: Senior Director at Cognizant’s Center for the Future of Work Says it is Time to Discuss Ethics in the Era of Artificial Intelligence
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“We have made more progress in artificial intelligence (AI) in the last three years than in the preceding three decades,” writes Manish Bahl. “AI is transforming from handy little applications that make our lives easier (from Alexa to Siri, Uber, and Netflix), to something more powerful that is reshaping the commercial world as we know it.” Excerpts:
“Our increasing dependency on AI, however, highlights serious issues of accountability and respect for human sensitivities.
As AI tightens its grip over every part of our lives, the ethical challenges it brings will only become more pressing. So how do you hang on to ethics when machines can do everything? While there are no universal rules that everyone can follow, there certainly are some important lessons that can help.
Blend human values into your business objectives and innovation strategy. Today’s AI solutions reflect our business objectives rather than the human values. An essential task is to define what ethics means to your business model, and the resulting values should be reflected in your annual report, company vision, marketing programs, technology, business processes, and almost everything else you do.
It’s time to get together with customers, partners, and the competition. It is absolutely vital to realize that ethics-related discussions are a must when it comes to exploring the grey areas of AI.
Make data ethics a key competitive differentiator. Data is the foundation of any AI system. Therefore, ethics must become a key performance indicator for every employee who has a direct or indirect connection with customer data.
Don’t hide behind the regulations. Businesses must focus on self-regulation based on openness and accountability, with an ever-vigilant eye toward the maintenance of human values.
There is a clear requirement for more open and honest conversations about the ethical implications of AI and how we can best prepare ourselves for the exciting times ahead.”
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