Tech Giants Team Up To Devise An Ethics Of Artificial Intelligence

The Terminator isn't arriving anytime soon, but concern is growing that artificial intelligence is already so pervasive in society--and getting more so all the time--that there needs to be more focus on how it's being used and potentially misused (even if by accident). Aside from futuristic killer robots, there are already real dangers ranging from faulty autonomous cars to algorithms used in hiring or recruiting that have an inadvertent bias against women or ethnic groups. The giants of artificial intelligence, especially as it affects consumers and businesses, have just joined together to form a nonprofit called the Partnership on AI, with founding members Amazon, DeepMind/Google, Facebook, IBM, and Microsoft. It's the latest effort to keep a collective eye on how AI is developed and used.OpenAI, founded in December 2015, has a similar goal of conducing research and conferences to promote responsible use of AI. "This partnership will provide consumer and industrial users of cognitive systems a vital voice in the advancement of the defining technology of this century," reads part of a statement from IBM's AI ethics researcher, Francesca Rossi. The Partnership on AI announcementlays out an ambitious agenda for research to be conducted or funded by members, in partnership with academics, user group advocates, and industry experts.