Question

QUESTION 5: Case Study I - ETHICS CASE STUDY [10 Marks]

One for the Road—Anyone?

“Florence Yozefu is a brilliant scientist who heads a robotics research laboratory at one of the top ten research universities. Florence has been developing wearable robotics gear that can take over the driving functions of a vehicle from a human operator when it is worn by the driver. In laboratory tests, the robot, nicknamed Catchmenot, has performed successfully whenever Florence and her assistants have worn the robot. However, no real-life experiment has ever been conducted outside the lab. Florence has been planning to try it out in her project plan but has not yet had a chance to do so. For New Year’s Eve, Florence has plans to visit her mother and sister, about 100 miles away. This was a good opportunity to show her mother and her sister what she has been working on in the last few months. So, she decides to take Catchmenot with her. She packs her car the evening before and on the morning of the trip, she passes by the lab to get her robot and put it in the car. She drives the 100 miles in a little under her usual time and arrives at her mother’s house earlier than usual”. “In the evening, Florence bids her mother good-bye and passes by her sister’s apartment as promised. At her sister’s apartment, she finds a few of her teen friends and they get right into a party mode. Florence drinks and dances and forgets about the time. There are many stories to tell and to listen to. About 1:00 a.m., after the midnight champagne toast, she decides to leave and drive back to her apartment. She had promised to accompany her friends to a pre-planned engagement. Although she is very drunk, and against her friend’s advice and insistence that she should not drive, Florence puts on Catchmenot and in a few minutes she is off. Thirty minutes later, she is cruising at 70 mph and she is also sound asleep. She is awakened by a squirrel running all over her car at about 5:00 a.m. She is parked by the roadside in front of her apartment complex. She has made it home safely. She has no idea when and where she passed out and what happened along the way. She will never know. Although she is surprised, confused, and feels guilty, she is happy how well Catchmenot has worked. She decides to market it. How much should she charge for it, she wonders”.

[Source: Kizza J.M. History of Computing. In: Ethical and Social Issues in the Information Age, 2010, Texts in Computer Science. Springer, London] Please answer the following questions:

1. As AI applications increase, such as in the use of robotics, will the wider use of these “manlike” machines compromise our moral values system? Why or why not? [2 Marks]

2. Discus the future of computer ethics in the integrated environment of Artificial Intelligence (A I), Virtual Reality (VR), and cyberspace. [3 Marks]

3. If anything went wrong during the ride home, would Florence be responsible? Who should be? What are the consequences? [3 Marks]

4. Discuss the ethical implications of Artificial Intelligence. [2 Marks]

Answer 1

1.The majority of the present research on the ethical and social impact of AI has been focussed on determining the guidelines and ethical principles associated with machine learning along with other algorithms of AI. However, the wider use of AI enabled devices may compromise themoral values of humans because of the continuous learning on everyfields by the machines and capabilities of analysing the huge datasets and take efficient decisions making them superior in some context. To make an extensive of AI enabled machines needs some ethical considerations and policies approved by the government agencies toavoid misuse of this intelligent technology.

2.Artificial intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality(VR) and cyberspace are digital technologies that will have significant impact on the development of humanity in the near future. They have raised fundamental questions about what we should do with these systems, what the systems themselves should do, what risks they involve, and how we can control these.There is broad consensus that accountability, liability, and the rule of law are basic requirements that must be upheld in the face of new technologies. Though very little actual policy has been produced, there are some notable beginnings: The latest EU policy document suggests “trustworthy AI” should be lawful, ethical, and technically robust, and then spells this out as seven requirements: human oversight, technical robustness, privacy and data governance, transparency, fairness, well-being, and accountability.

3.Currently, the law treats machines as if they were all created equal, as simple consumer products. In most cases, when an accident occurs, standards of strict product liability law apply. In other words, unless a consumer uses a product in an outrageous way or grossly ignores safety warnings, the manufacturer is automatically considered at fault. Here the manufacturer of the product i.e Catchmenot is Florence herself, and she is also the one driving the car irresponisbly completly depending on the wearable. Therfore she is liable for anything that went wrong during the ride. If any damages occur due to the ride she would be solely responsible for that.

4.AI presents a new set of ethical challenges for business leaders whose deployment of mechanisation may have profound effects on the workforce and society.The most immediate concern for many is that AI-enabled systems will replace workers across a wide range of industries. AI is already widespread in finance, space exploration, advanced manufacturing, transportation, energy development and healthcare. Unmanned vehicles and autonomous drones are also performing functions that previously required human intervention.

With regulatory and legal frameworks struggling to keep pace with the rapid pace of technological change, public demand is growing for greater transparency as to how these tools and technologies are being used. The UK's Institute of Business Ethics (IBE) recently issued a briefing urging organisations to examine the risks, impacts, and side effects that AI might have.The report proposes a framework outlining ten core values and principles for the use of AI in business. They are :-

• Accuracy.
• Respect of privacy.
• Transparency.
• Interpretability.
• Fairness.
• Integrity.
• Control.
• Impact.
• Accountability.
• Learning.

It is clear that the diversity and complexity of the ethical concerns arising from the development of artificial intelligence; from large scale issues such job losses from automation, degradation of the environment and furthering inequalities, to more personal moral quandaries such as how AI may affect our privacy, our ability to judge what is real, and our personal relationships and for the same reason robust ethical principles are essential in the future of this rapidly developing technology. There is a clear need for the development of viable and applicable legislation and policies that will face the multifaceted challenges associated with AI, including potential breaches of fundamental ethical principles.