Is ethical risk getting the better of artificial intelligence? - TechHQ

Beneath the exciting tide of artificial intelligence (AI) applications permeating industries and consumers' daily lives, there has been an undercurrent growing in strength over years: the question over whether we can trust the decisions of morally-void autonomous systems, informed by and interpreting only the datasets they receive. The challenges around ethical AI have, for several years, been viewed as the biggest challenge facing its users, but now some organizations are actually killing plans for adoption because of the potential danger or avoiding embarking on projects altogether. As reported by Yahoo, the chief technologist for business software maker LivePerson, Alex Spinelli, said he had canceled some AI projects at his employer (and previous ones) over concerns about AI – in particular, the use of machine learning to analyze customer data and make predictions about behavior. Spinelli attributed the AI systems – particularly those used by Facebook to target users with content and pages it thinks will be of interest to users – to the spread of disinformation conflagrating the pro-Trump Capitol riots last month. AI has shown transformative potential in its ability to undertake complex tasks with lower costs and resources.