UnitePaper2021(1)

AFrameworkforEthicalAIattheUnitedNations

Preparedby:LambertHogenhout

Organization:UNOfficeforInformationandCommunicationsTechnology

Contact:hogenhout@

Date:15-3-2021

Contents

EXECUTIVESUMMARY2

INTRODUCTION3

1.PROBLEMSWITHAI5

2.DEFININGETHICALAI11

3.IMPLEMENTINGETHICALAI20

CONCLUSION23

UnitePapers—“InformingandCapturingUNTechnologicalInnovation”

Anoccasionalpaperseriestoshareideas,insightsandin-depthstudiesontechnologyandtheUnitedNations.TheseriesissponsoredbytheOfficeofInformationandCommunicationsTechnology(OICT)butdoesnotnecessarilyrepresenttheofficialviewsofOICToroftheUnitedNations.

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ExecutiveSummary

Thispaperaimstoprovideanoverviewoftheethicalconcernsinartificialintelligence(AI)andthe

frameworkthatisneededtomitigatethoserisks,andtosuggestapracticalpathtoensurethe

developmentanduseofAIattheUnitedNations(UN)alignswithourethicalvalues.Theoverview

discusseshowAIisanincreasinglypowerfultoolwithpotentialforgood,albeitonewithahighriskof

negativeside-effectsthatgoagainstfundamentalhumanrightsandUNvalues.ItexplainstheneedforethicalprinciplesforAIalignedwithprinciplesfordatagovernance,asdataandAIaretightlyinterwoven.Itexploresdifferentethicalframeworksthatexistandtoolssuchasassessmentlists.ItrecommendsthattheUNdevelopaframeworkconsistingofethicalprinciples,architecturalstandards,assessment

methods,toolsandmethodologies,andapolicytogoverntheimplementationandadherencetothisframework,accompaniedbyaneducationprogramforstaff.

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Introduction

Artificialintelligence(AI)hasbecomeubiquitousinourlives—fromadvertisementsthattargetusaswebrowsetheweb,toautopilotfeaturesincars,airplanesandpublictransport,toalgorithmsthatscreenjobapplications;andalmosteveryweek,thepressinformsuswithexcitementaboutnewapplicationsor

achievementsofAI).

Therelentlessdigitizationoftheworldalsoplaysarole.Promptedbyremotelearningduringthe

pandemic,aschoolinHongKongnowusesanAItoreadchildren'semotionsfromtheirvideoimageastheylearn1,inordertoassesshowwelltheyunderstoodthematerial.AndAIsareabletohandle

increasinglysophisticatedtasks.Autonomousdrivinginreal-lifetraffic,forinstance,requiresadazzlingrangeofinterpretationanddecisionmaking.

GiventhatAI-basedsystemshaveaccesstoandcanprocessinfinitelymoreinformationthananyhuman,theyareboundtoeventuallytakebetterdecisionsthanhumans.Inanumberoffieldsthisisalready

undeniablytrue:Forexample,thereareAIsforvariousformsofcancerdetectionthatoutperformthe

averagetrainedspecialist.Thatlistwillcontinuetogrow,andwewillincreasinglyhandoverdecisionstoAI.TheAIbeing“better”isoftendefinedasfaster,moreaccurate,ormoreoptimalaccordingtocertaincriteria.Butisthatallthatmatters?

TheimmediatefactorsthattheAIisprogrammedtoachieveoroptimize(example:“getthecarfrompointAtopointB”)cannotnotbetheonlyconsiderations.Wecanimposeconstraints(“…anddon’tkillany

pedestriansontheway”)buttheyaddressonlyspecificproblemsthatmayarise.AsAIsgetincreasinglycomplexandhandleavarietyofunpredictablesituationsautonomously,theonlywaytoensuretheAI

doesnotdoanything“bad”,istooutfitthemwithasetofgeneralmoralsandvalues.WeneedtobuildanethicalframeworkintoourAI.

StoriesaboutadvancedAIscreatinghavoc,eventryingtoeliminatemankind,havebeenthetopicsofsciencefictionnovelsforalongtime.Whilethe“AItakescontrol”scenariosareunlikelyforthe

foreseeablefuture,someconcernsarequicklybecomingrealityasAIisincreasinglyusedinfinancialsystems,lawenforcementsystems,autonomouscarsandweapons.

TheUNSecretariathasalreadystartedusingAIinsomeforms-Alba,achatbotavailabletoUN

personnel,isoneformofAI.Theseapplicationsmaynotseemtobecomplexenoughtoneedtheirownethicalframework,butaswewillseefurtherinthispaper,somepotentiallyproblematicissuesarealreadymanifestingthemselves;andinthecomingyearsthatneedforanethicsframeworkforAIwillbecome

essential.

Andindeed,manygovernments,regionalorganizationsandbusinesseshavestartedtoconsiderthewaytheyareusingAI.Manyhavestatedprinciples,andsomehaveissuedpolicies.TheEuropean

Commission,forinstance,isoneofthemainglobalplayersintheareaofAIpolicymaking.

1CNN,16Feb2021.See

/2021/02/16/tech/emotion-recognition-ai-education-spc-intl

-hnk/index.html

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Fromacorporateperspective-otherfactorsmayplayarole:thedesiretobeagoodcorporatecitizen(which,ashasbeendemonstrated,makesalotofcommercialsensetoo),audibility(whatarewedoing,basedonwhichdecisions),fiduciaryresponsibilityorcompliance.

ApartfrompreventingundesirableeffectsofAI,anethicsframeworkcouldalsooutlinethepositive

contributionsanAIshouldaimtomake.FromaUNperspective,thepotentialofAIforGoodhasbeenstudiedanddebated(andimplemented)foranumberofyears2anditdeservescarefulconsiderationtoincorporateinasetofethicalprinciples.

TheaimofthispaperistooutlinetheethicalconcernsofAI,nowandinthenearfuture,whattheUNcanandshoulddoandhowtogoaboutit.

Thispaperiscomposedofthreeparts:

Part1:AnanalysisoftheethicalproblemswithAI:Whyshouldwebeconcerned?Whataretheissues?

Part2:DefiningEthicalAI:AdetailedanalysisoftheethicsofAI,includingastock-takeofwhathasbeendone

Part3:ImplementingAI:ProposingapracticalwayforwardfortheUN.Includesanoverviewofresearch,examplesandcurrenttools

Theintentionofthispaperisthatitwillleadtodiscussionfollowedbyaction,whetherintheformofasetofguidelines,policy,acodeofethics,oreducationalinitiativestocreateawarenessoftheissues.ThisaffectsnotonlythetechnologistswhomaydevelopAI-basedsystems.ItalsoconcernsthoseinvolvedinprocuringorintegratingAIsystems,thoseatthemanageriallevelwhoapprovesuchprojects,and

ultimatelytheusersaffectedbythesystems.AllthesestakeholdersneedtobeawareoftheissuesandthemeasurestheUNintendstotake,andallneedtobetakenintoaccountwhendevelopingtheethicsframeworkthatguidesourdevelopmentanduseofAI.

2TheAIforGoodGlobalSummitorganizedyearlybyITUisoneoftheplatformswherethisisexplored.see:

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1.ProblemswithAI

A.WhataretherisksofAI?

WhenanAIsystemgivesawrongmedicaldiagnosisorthefacialrecognitioninyoursmartphonefails,theconcernisclear:thesystemdoesnotaccuratelyperformitstask,itmakesamistake.Wecanofcoursewondertowhatextentthisriskisacceptable.Afterall,humansalsomakemistakes.ThecaptainoftheTitanicsailedtooclosetoanicebergwithdisastrousresults.Andatmore

personallevel,youmayhaveonceforgottenyourumbrellainthesubwayorleftyourdinneronthestovetopfortoolong,causingittoburn.Weacceptsomeofthosemistakesasaninevitablefactoflife,sotowhatextentshouldwerequireanAItobeperfect?

SomeoftheproblemswithAIstemfromthenatureofhowthesystemsarebuilt.AnAIisbasedona“model”–acollectionofneuronsthatrepresentlittlepiecesofknowledgethattogetherformthealgorithm,thefunctioningoftheAI.TheknowledgechangesovertimeastheAI“learns”usingfeedbackfromexternalevents,muchlikeachildlearnstorideabicycle.Whileacomputerthat

programsitselfandimprovesovertimeseemsgreat,italsocausesconcerns.InmanycaseswehavenoideahowsuccessfulAIsystemsfunction–theyarea“blackbox”thatoperatesin

mysteriousways.

OtherproblemscomefromthedatathattheAIistrainedwith.Itcanbeuseful,sometimes

essential,toprovideanAIwithlargeamountsofinitialdatatolearnfrom,suchas,thousandsofX-raysthatmaycontaincancercells,millionsofarticlesorsocialmediapostsonaparticular

subject,orhoursofvideofootageoftrafficsituations.Andifthatdataistaintedorskewedinacertainway,theAIwillmimicthatbias.Forexample,in2016MicrosoftreleasedTay,oneoftheearliestgeneralpurposechatbots.ItwastrainedusingmillionsofpostsonpublicforasuchasQuoraandReddit–placeswhereanyonecanpostanything,andwhicharenotoriousfor

unfilteredcontent.Aftersomeinitialsuccess,Tayquicklystartedusingrudeandracistlanguageandhadtobetakenoffline3.

3

/wiki/Tay_

(bot)

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ThemostsophisticatedAIsystemsneedmassiveamountsofdataandcomputingpower.Ortoputitanotherway,thosewithaccesstobigdata,AIexpertiseanddeeppocketstofundthe

thehandofafewcompanies(whichare

currentlyintheUnitedStatesandinChina).TheincreaseinuseofAIinoursocietyrisksexacerbatingthatimbalanceofpower,whichwillhavegeopoliticalimplications.

AIisalreadybeingusedextensivelyinthe

military.Somenationsarealreadyusing

autonomousdronesthatkillhumans,andtheusagewillinevitablyincrease.AnAIarmsracemightverywellbethelogicalresult.

Ofcourse,AIisjustatool,andlikeanytool,it

canbeusedforgoodorbadpurposes.

However,asphilosopherNickBostrompositedwithhisVulnerableWorldHypothesis4,AImaybeatechnologythatallowsanygroupthatis

sufficientlyadvancedtodestroytheworld,

regardlessoftheactionofotherplayers.Similartechnologiesarenuclearweapons,

biotechnologyand,perhaps,nanotechnology.AssuchAIrequiresspecialattention.

Wearecurrentlyusingwhatisknownas

artificialnarrowintelligence(ANI),aformofAIthatisstillquitespecifictocertaintasks.Inthefuturewemaydevelopartificialgeneral

intelligence(AGI)thatreachesalevelof

flexibilityandgeneralpurposeequaltohumans

computationalneedswillwininAI.Thatconcentratesthepowerofthisexceptionaltechnologyin

What’saModel?

ForanAItofunction,itneedstohavea

modeloftheworld.Thatcanbedoneis

severalways,butapopularmethodisa

NeuralNetwork.Takinginspirationfromthehumanbrain,aneuralnetworkconsistsofsmallentities-artificialneurons-thatfiresignalsateachotherandreacttothose

signals.Togethertheseneuronsrepresentthealgorithmthatdetermineswhatthe

systemdoes.Andthisalgorithm-thewaytheneuronsreact-canchangeovertime-eitherbecausetheyaremanipulatedbyadeveloperorbecausetheAI“learns”fromfeedbackonitsactions.Thisnetworkofneuronscanhavemanylayersandis

typicallyverylarge-billionsofneuronsinsomemodels.Modelinterpretability-

understandingwhatlayersinthenetworkrepresentandwhytheyfunctionthewaytheydo,isthenadifficultquestion.

–tobeabletoreacttoanysituationandsolveanytask.Someevenspeculateaboutartificial

superintelligence(ASI)thatfarsurpasseshumancognitiveabilities.MostresearchersagreethatAGIisdecades,ifnotcenturies,away.Ofcourse,evenifitistheformer,westillneedtotakean

4Bostrom,Nick.2019.“TheVulnerableWorldHypothesis.”GlobalPolicy10(4):455–76.

/10.1111/1758-5899.12718

.

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interest.ButitmaynotheIptoworryaboutspecifics,sincewehavesoIittIeideaofwhatwiII

happeninthemeantimeandwhattheworIdwiIIIookIikeatthatpointinthefuture.ThebestwecandoisbuiIdgoodethicaIframeworksfornow,andinthefuture.

B.Anoverviewoftheissues

LeavingthegeopoIiticaIconsiderationsaside,IetusattempttoIisttheconcernssystematicaIIy.

1.Incompetence

ThismeanstheAIsimpIyfaiIinginitsjob.TheconsequencescanvaryfromunintentionaIdeath(acarcrash)toanunjustrejectionofaIoanorjobappIication.

2.Lossofprivacy

AIoffersthetemptationtoabusesomeone’spersonaIdata,forinstancetobuiIdaprofiIeof

exampIe,intheUnitedStates,acompany

caIIedCIearviewAIhascoIIectedpubIicIy

avaiIabIephotosofusersfromFacebook,

LinkedInandotherpIatformsintoaIarge

databasecoupIedwithAI-drivenfaciaI

recognitionaIgorithms.Thecompanyis

seIIingthesystemtoIawenforcement

agencies.InEurope,theGeneraIData

ProtectionReguIation(GDPR)wouIdcIearIyreguIatethisformofuseofpersonaIdata,

buttheruIesaremuchIesscIearwhenit

comestobuiIdingaprofiIeofausertotargetadvertisements,forinstance.

3.Discrimination

WhenAIisnotcarefuIIydesigned,itcan

discriminateagainstcertaingroups.An

exampIeistheaIgorithmsthecompany

themtotargetadvertisementsmoreeffectiveIy.WhiIethismaybeanissuereIatedtodata,thenatureofAIexacerbatestheeffectsandaIsomakesthesituationmorecompIex.For

TheconnectionbetweenAIandData

WehaveseensomeoftheissueswithAIactuallypertaintothedataitwas

trainedwith.Theconnectionbetween

AIanddataisimportant.DatashapesthealgorithmanycharacteristicsofthedatawillmanifestintheAI.IssuesinAIsystemsaresimilartothoseindata

governance,includingdataprivacy,consent,purposeandintent,

proportionalityandprotection.Whenweestablishethicalprinciples,use

designtoolsandmethodologiesor

monitorandassessoperational

systems,weneedtolookatthedataandthe(AI)algorithmtogether.

PaIantirdeveIopedfortheLosAngeIesPoIiceDepartment5.ThepurposeoftheAIwasto

support“predictivepoIicing”一predictwherecrimeswiIIhappensothepoIicecanproactiveIypatroI.TheAIwascriticizedforperpetuatingsystemicracismas,basedonhistoricaIdata,itfIaggedcertainneighborhoodsashigherrisk.MorerecentIy,ChinesecompanyDahuawas

5

https://www.technoI/2020/07/17/1005396/predictive-poIicing-aIgorithms-racist

-dismantIed-machine-Iearning-bias-criminaI-justice/

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criticizedforitsfacialrecognitionsoftwarethatcanspecificallydetectpeoplefromcertainethnicbackgrounds6.

4.Bias

TheAIwillonlybeasgoodasthedataitistrainedwith.Ifthedatacontainsbias(andmuchdatadoes),thentheAIwillmanifestthatbias,too.IftheAIistrainedwithdatafroma

particulargrouponly,itwillstartmakingthewrongassumptions.Forexample,arecentstudyshowedthatdatasetsfromIndiadrawnfromonlinesourcesgivesaskewedpicture,sincehalfofthepopulation–particularlywomenandruralresidents–donothaveaccesstothe

internet.

5.ErosionofSociety

AIisusedbymanyplatformsthatpeoplegettheirdailynewsfrom.Inthepast,weusedto

choosefromarangeofTVchannelsandarangeofnewspapers.Manyofusheardorreadtheexactsamenewsstories.Withonlinenewsfeeds,bothonwebsitesandsocialmedia

platforms,thenewsisnowhighlypersonalizedforus.Werisklosingasharedsenseof

reality,abasicsolidarity.Whatmakesthingsworseisthatthishyper-personalizationisnot

justforourbenefit(asmanyplatformsclaim)–themaingoalistokeepusengagedwiththeplatform.AsTufekciobservedin20187,theAIthatpowersYouTubefoundoutthatpeoplearedrawntocontentthatissimilartowhattheystartedconsumingbuttakentoafurtherextreme.Inordertokeepusglued,theAIsuggestsevermoreextremecontent.Forexample,politicallyconservativevideosleadtoextremeright-wingvideosorconspiracytheories,oraninterestinjoggingleadstocontentaboutultra-marathons.TheAIhasnoevilintentperse-itissimply

tryingtoachieveitsobjectiveofkeepingyouengaged.

6.Lackoftransparency

Theideaofa“blackbox”makingdecisionswithoutanyexplanation,withoutofferinginsightintheprocess,hasacoupleofdisadvantages:itmayfailtogainthetrustofitsusersanditmayfailtomeetregulatorystandardssuchastheabilitytoaudit.

7.Deception

AIhasbecomeverygoodatcreatingfakecontent.Fromtexttophotos,audioandvideo.Thename“DeepFake”referstocontentthatisfakeatsuchalevelofcomplexitythatourmindrulesoutthepossibilitythatitisfake.Weallknowthataphotocanbealtered.ButaphotoofapersonthatisartificiallycreatedbyanAIisindistinguishablefromarealphoto.Audioandvideocanbefakedtosophisticatedlevels,andwearenotusedtotakingthatpossibilityinto

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/wiki/Dahua_Technology

7Tufekci,Z.(2018).YouTube,thegreatRadicalizer.RetrievedMarch7,2021.

/2018/03/10/opinion/sunday/youtube-politics-radical.html

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account.In2020,hundredsofmillionsofdollarswerestolenbyconvincingcompanyemployeestomaketransfersusingthedeep-fakedvoiceoftheirCEO.

8.Unintendedconsequences

realizesthatthefamilycattendstomakethehousemessyanddecideskillingthecatisagoodwaytowardsitsgivenobjective.

9.Manipulation

The2016scandalinvolvingCambridge

Analyticaisthemostinfamousexamplewherepeople’sdatawascrawledfromFacebookandanalyticswerethenprovidedtotargetthese

peoplewithmanipulativecontentforpoliticalpurposes.WhileitmaynothavebeenAIperse,itisbasedonsimilardataanditiseasytoseehowAIwouldmakethismoreeffective.

10.LethalAutonomousWeapons(LAW)

AstheuseofAIisbecomingubiquitous,

increaseduseofAI-poweredweaponsmaybeinevitable.WhatisdebatedasanethicalissueistheuseofLAW—AI-drivenweaponsthatfullyautonomouslytakeactionsthat

intentionallykillhumans.Technologically,thepossibilityclearlyalreadyexists,whetherthefinaldecision(“pullingthetrigger”)islefttoahumanisapolicychoice.TheUNhas

deliberatedtheissue8andanumberofgroupsandsomenationshavearguedforabanof

LAW.TheUNistheprimeforumforsuchadiscussion9.

SometimesanAIfindswaystoachieveitsgivengoalsinwaysthatarecompletelydifferentfromwhatitscreatorshadinmind.Imagineahomerobotistaskedtokeepthehouseclean

ShouldsomeAIbekeptsecret?

IscertainAItechnologytoo

dangeroustomakepublicly

available?Shoulditberestricted,similartowhatisdoneinthefieldofITsecurity,syntheticbiologyand

nuclearphysics?Someresearchersargueforthat.

Theoppositeargumentisthatif

powerfultechnologyisinthehandsofafewonlythatcreatesimbalanceand

increasespotentialforabuse.OpenAIwassetupwiththevisiontodevelopresearchandmakeitavailableto

everyone,therebyleavingtheplayingfield.However,itendedup

developingadvancedalgorithmsthatrequiresuchlargecomputational

resourcesthatonlyahandfulof

powerfulplayerswouldbenefitfromit,sotheydecidednottoreleaseit

publicly.

Ingeneral,academiaplaysalarge

roleintheadvancesinAIandthereismuchopennessinthatcommunity-

newtechniquesaretypicallysharedwithinmonthsorevenweeks.

8UNGA.“FirstCommitteeWeighsPotentialRisksofNewTechnologiesasMembersExchangeViewsonHowtoControlLethalAutonomousWeapons,Cyberattacks“.

/press/en/2018/gadis3611.doc.htm

9Gill(2020)“TheRoleoftheUnitedNationsinAddressingEmergingTechnologiesintheAreaofLethalAutonomousWeaponsSystems”

/en/un-chronicle/role-united-nations

-

addressing-emerging-technologies-area-lethal-autonomous-weapons

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11.MalicioususeofAI

JustasAIcanbeusedinmanydifferentfields,itisunfortunatelyalsohelpfulinperpetratingdigitalcrimes.AI-supportedmalwareandhackingarealreadyareality.Thereisa2020reportbyEUROPOL,UNICRIandTrendMicroonthistopic10.

12.LossofAutonomy

Respectforpersonalfreedomandautonomyisingrainedintobasichumanrightsinmany

societies.DelegatingdecisionstoanAI,especiallyanAIthatisnottransparentandnot

contestable,mayleavepeoplefeelinghelpless,subjectedtothedecisionpowerofamachine.

13.Exclusion

ThebestAItechniquesrequiresalargeamountresources:data,computationalpowerandhumanAIexperts.ThereisariskthatAIwillendupinthehandsofafewplayers,andmostwillloseoutonitsbenefits.Thiswouldhavebothsocietalandgeopoliticalimplications.

AnotherethicalissueistheHumanetreatmentofAI.GiventhatAIisanalgorithm,itmayseemoddtoworryaboutitstreatment.ButasAIbecomesincreasinglysophisticatedandhumanoid

robotsaredevelopedthatlooklikeusandbehavelikeus,thediscussionwillcontinue.Anumberofrecentsciencefictionmoviesexplorethistheme.

10TrendMicro,Europol,UNICRI.2020.“MaliciousUsesandAbusesofArtificialIntelligence”

http://www.unicri.it/node/3278

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2.DefiningEthicalAI

C.WhatisEthics?

WewantourAItobe“good”,oratleasttoavoidallthenegativecharacteristicswehave

identified.WeneedacomprehensivesetofethicalprinciplesthatwillguidethedevelopmentanduseofAI.Unfortunately,thereisnosingletruthforethics.

Ethicsarethestandardsofrightandwrong,acceptableandnotacceptable,inacertain

community.Itincludesanindividual’srights,obligations,virtues,thebenefitstosociety,anda

senseoffairness.Ethicswillclearlydifferforvariousculturesorgroups.Whatisacceptableinonecountrymaynotbeinanother.Theyalsochangeovertime.Whatwascommonlyaccepted100

yearsagoisnotOKtoday.

Evenforthebasictheoryofethics,differentapproachesexist.ClassicalphilosopherAristotle

proposedVirtueEthics(“WhatkindofpersonshouldIbe?”).ModernphilosopherImmanuelKantwroteaboutDeontologicalEthics(“HowshouldIbehave?”).AnotherapproachisConsequentialistEthics(“Whatshouldbemygoal?”).Thoseareonlyafewofthemanyothertheoriesofethics.

SomebasicethicalprinciplesgotothecoreofthequestionswearetryingtosolveaboutAI.Forinstance,AristotlewritesintheNicomacheanEthics11aboutmoralresponsibilityandarguesthat“theactionmusthaveitsoriginintheagent”.TheseideasbecomeconcretelyrelevantoncewegrantAIsystemsautonomy(thatis,agency).Whoisresponsibleforanaccidentcausedbyanautonomouscar?Theowner?Thedealerthatsoldthecar?ThemanufactureroftheAI?The

supplierofthedatathattrainedtheAI?

Wecanseeourethicalvaluesasbeing

composedofdifferentlayers,goingfromglobaltogrouptoindividual:Coreethicalvalues

basedoninalienablehumanrights(human

dignity,autonomy);constitutionalvalues(ruleoflaw,equity,privacy);groupspecificvalues

(beliefsorculturalnorms);andindividualethicalvalues(personalconvictions).

11Aristotle.350BCE.“NicomacheanEthics”.Availableasfreee-bookonline.Seealso

/wiki/Nicomachean_Ethics

”

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Wecanobservethedifferencesinethicsinvariouscountriesandculturesintheemphasistheyplaceinpoliciesandregulations.Arecentstudyshowsthedifferencesbetweenindividualistandcollectivisticcultureswhenitcomestomoraldilemmas12.Muchofthediscussion(andregulation)aboutdataprivacyconcernscomefromcountrieswithhighlyindividualisticcultures.Conversely,Confucianismteachesthatthesocietyismoreimportantthantheindividualandthisisengrainedinthemindofpeoplesteepedinthisphilosophy.Atthesametime,Buddhismregardsthe“self”asanillusion,soonecanwonderhowrelevantthedataprivacyoftheindividualthenis.Thatisnottosaythereisnoconceptofarighttoprivacyorotherrightsoftheindividualinthesecultures,buttheemphasisisdifferent.

A2019studyofthegloballandscapeofAIethicsguidelines13showsthattheUnitedStates,EuropeanUnionandUnitedKingdomarethemostprolificproducersofethicsguidelines.

However,thereareethicsguidelinesbeingproducedinSouthKoreaandJapanaswell.Inits2017AIPlan14,ChinastatesthegoaltobecometheworldleaderinAIby2030…butalso

“emergeasthedrivingforceindefiningethicalnormsandstandardsforAI”.SeveralChineseinstitutionshavesincedevelopedsetsofprinciples.

Anotherculturaldifferenceisthebalancebetweenprotectionofhumanrightsandtheprogressofbusiness.LetusnotforgetthereisalotofmoneyatstakeinAI.WithitsGeneralDataProtectionRegulation(GDPR),theEUhasimplementedsomeofthemoststringentcontrolsonpersonal

data,butsomecomplainthatitstiflesbusinessopportunities.

D.Whatbasisdowehave?

Agreeingonasetofethicalvaluesisharderifthegroupofstakeholdersislargerandmore

diverse.FortheUN,thechallengeishardestasweneedtoserveallpeople.However,wedo

haveabasistoworkfrom:TheUNCharter,theUniversalDeclarationofHumanRights(UDHR)andanumberofinternationaltreatiesgiveusabasisforAIprinciples.Infact,someprinciplesmaynotneedtobereinvented,justappliedinthecontextofAI.

12Awadetal.2018.“TheMoralMachineExperiment”.

/10.1038/s41586-018-0637-6

.

13Jobin,Anna,MarcelloIenca,andEffyVayena.2019.“ArtificialIntelligence:TheGlobalLandscapeofEthicsGuidelines.”

/abs/1906.11668

.

14ChinaStateCouncil.2017.“NewGenerationArtificialIntelligenceDevelopmentPlan”(新一代人工智能發展規劃).

/zhengce/content/2017-07/20/content_5211996.htm

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EthicalvaluesandideasfromallculturesmayhaveusefulconceptstocontributetothehealthyprinciplesforAI.TheIEEEStandardsAssociationinvestigated,initsreport“EthicallyAligned

Design”15,howapplyingBuddhist,Ubuntu,andShinto-inspiredethicscouldimproveresponsibleAI.ArecentpublicationfromMITTechnologyReviewexploredwhatBuddhismmayoffertotheethicsofAI.16Someideasfromthatpaperarethat“anyethicaluseofAImuststrivetodecreasepainandsuffering”andthe“Donoharmprinciple:theburdenofproofwouldbew