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Artificial Intelligence (AI) Ethics: Ethics of AI and Ethical AI
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74
Artifcial Intelligence (AI) Ethics:
Ethics of AI and Ethical AI
Keng Siau, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, USA
Weiyu Wang, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, USA
ABSTRACT
Artificialintelligence(AI)-basedtechnologyhasachievedmanygreatthings,suchasfacialrecognition,
medical diagnosis, and self-driving cars. AI promises enormous benefits for economic growth,
socialdevelopment,aswellashumanwell-beingandsafetyimprovement.However,thelow-levelof
explainability,databiases,datasecurity,dataprivacy,andethicalproblemsofAI-basedtechnology
posesignificantrisksforusers,developers,humanity,andsocieties.AsAIadvances,onecritical
issueishowtoaddresstheethicalandmoralchallengesassociatedwithAI.Eventhoughtheconcept
of“machineethics”wasproposedaround2006,AIethicsisstillintheinfancystage.AIethicsis
thefieldrelatedtothestudyofethicalissuesinAI.ToaddressAIethics,oneneedstoconsiderthe
ethicsofAIandhowtobuildethicalAI.EthicsofAIstudiestheethicalprinciples,rules,guidelines,
policies,andregulationsthatarerelatedtoAI.EthicalAIisanAIthatperformsandbehavesethically.
OnemustrecognizeandunderstandthepotentialethicalandmoralissuesthatmaybecausedbyAI
toformulatethenecessaryethicalprinciples,rules,guidelines,policies,andregulationsforAI(i.e.,
EthicsofAI).WiththeappropriateethicsofAI,onecanthenbuildAIthatexhibitsethicalbehavior
(i.e.,EthicalAI).ThispaperwilldiscussAIethicsbylookingattheethicsofAIandethicalAI.
WhataretheperceivedethicalandmoralissueswithAI?Whatarethegeneralandcommonethical
principles,rules,guidelines,policies,andregulationsthatcanresolveoratleastattenuatetheseethical
andmoralissueswithAI?Whataresomeofthenecessaryfeaturesandcharacteristicsofanethical
AI?HowtoadheretotheethicsofAItobuildethicalAI?
KEywoRDS
AI Ethics, Artificial Intelligence, Ethical AI, Ethics, Ethics of AI, Machine Ethics, Roboethics
1. INTRoDUCTIoN
Someresearchersandpractitionersbelievethatartificialintelligence(AI)isstillalongwayfrom
havingconsciousnessandbeingcomparabletohumans,andconsequently,thereisnorushtoconsider
ethicalissues.ButAI,combinedwithothersmarttechnologiessuchasrobotics,hasalreadyshown
itspotentialinbusiness,healthcare,transportation,andmanyotherdomains.Further,AIapplications
arealreadyimpactinghumanityandsociety.Autonomousvehiclescanreplacealargenumberof
jobs,andtransformthetransportationandassociatedindustries.Forexample,short-haulflightsand
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hospitalityservicesalonghighwayswillbeimpactedifdriverlesscarsenablepassengerstosleep
andworkduringthejourney.AI-recruitersareknowntoexhibithumanbiasesbecausethetraining
datainheritsthesamebiaseswehaveashumans.Thewealthgapcreatedbythewideningdifferences
betweenreturnoncapitalandreturnonlaborisposedtocreatesocialunrestandupheavals.The
futureofworkandfutureofhumanitywillbeaffectedbyAIandplansneedtobeformulatedandput
inplace.BuildingAIethicallyandhavingethicalAIareurgentandcritical.Unfortunately,building
ethicalAIisanenormouslycomplexandchallengingtask.
1.1. what is Ethics?
Ethicsisacomplex,complicated,andconvolutedconcept.Ethicscanbedefinedasthemoralprinciples
governingthebehaviorsoractionsofanindividualoragroupofindividuals(Nalini,2019).Inother
words,ethicsareasystemofprinciplesorrulesorguidelinesthathelpdeterminewhatisgoodor
right.Broadlyspeaking,ethicscanbedefinedasthedisciplinedealingwithrightversuswrong,and
themoralobligationsanddutiesofentities(e.g.,humans,intelligentrobots,etc.).
Ethicshasbeenstudiedbymanyresearchersfromdifferentdisciplines.Mosthumansarefamiliar
withvirtueethicssinceveryyoungbecauseitisabehaviorguideinstilledbyparentsandteachersto
helpchildrenpracticegoodconduct.Aristotle(Yu,1998)believeswhenapersonactsinaccordance
withvirtue,thispersonwilldowellandbecontent.Virtueethicsispartofnormativeethics,which
studieswhatmakesactionsrightorwrong.Itcanbeviewedasoverarchingmoralprinciplesthathelp
peopleresolvedifficultmoraldecisions.Astheinteractionbetweenhumans,betweenhumansand
animals,betweenhumansandmachines,andevenbetweenmachinesisincreasing,ethicaltheories
have been applied to real-life situations, such as business ethics, animal ethics, military ethics,
bioethics,andmachineethics.Thestudyofethicsandethicalprinciplesisconstantlyevolvingand
developing.Table1listsseveralethicsdefinitionsgivenbyresearchers.
InthecontextofAI,theethicsofAIspecifiesthemoralobligationsanddutiesofanAIandits
creators.Researchershavedonemuchworkstudyinghumanethicalissues.Manyethicalframeworks
canbeusedtodirecthumanbehaviors,suchasactionsandactivitiesrelatedtorespectforindividuals,
Table 1. Definition of ethics

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beneficence,justice,privacy,accuracy,ownership/property,accessibility,fairness,accountability,
andtransparency(Wang&Siau,2018).
Oneofthebest-knownethicalframeworksisdevelopedbyKenBlanchardandNormanVincent
Peale(Blanchard&Peale,2011).Theframeworkconsistsofthreemainquestions:Isitlegal?Is
itfair?Howdoesitmakemefeel?AnotherframeworkistheMarkkulaCenterFramework,which
identifiesfiveapproachestodealingwithethicalissues,includingtheutilitarianismapproach,rights
approach, fairness or justice approach, common good approach, and virtue approach (Markkula
CenterforAppliedEthics,2015).
AIethics,however,isarelativelynewfieldandthesubsequentpartsofthepaperwilldiscuss
theAIethics–ethicsofAIandethicalAI.
1.2. what is “Ethics of AI” and “Ethical AI”?
TheethicsofAIispartoftheethicsofadvancedtechnologythatfocusesonrobotsandotherartificially
intelligentagents.Itcanbedividedintoroboethics(robotethics)andmachineethics.
Roboethicsisconcernedwiththemoralbehaviorsofhumansastheydesign,construct,use,and
interactwithAIagents,andtheassociatedimpactsofrobotsonhumanityandsociety.Inthispaper,
weconsideritasethicsofAI,whichdealwithethicalissuesrelatedtoAI,includingethicalissues
thatmayarisewhendesigninganddevelopingAI(e.g.,humanbiasesthatexistindata,dataprivacy,
andtransparency),andethicalissuescausedbyAI(e.g.,unemploymentandwealthdistribution).
Further,asmachinesbecomemoreintelligentandmayonedaygainconsciousness,weshouldconsider
robotrights–theconceptthatpeopleshouldhavemoralobligationstowardsintelligentmachines.It
issimilartohumanrightsandanimalrights.Forinstance,whetheritisethicaltodeployintelligent
militaryrobotstodangerousbattlefieldsorassignrobotstodirtyenvironments.Therightsofliberty,
freedomofexpression,equality,andhavingthoughtandemotionbelongtothiscategory.
MachineethicsdealswiththemoralbehaviorsofArtificialMoralAgents(AMAs),whichis
thefieldofresearchaddressingthedesignofartificialmoralagents.Astechnologyadvancesand
robotsbecomemoreintelligent,robotsorartificiallyintelligentagentsshouldbehavemorallyand
exhibitmoralvalues.WeconsidertheethicalbehaviorsofAIagentsasethicalAI.Currently,the
bestknownproposedrulesforgoverningAIagentsaretheThreeLawsofRoboticsputforthbyIssac
Asimovinthe1950s(Asimov,1950).FirstLaw,arobotmaynotinjureahumanbeingor,through
inaction,allowahumanbeingtocometoharm.SecondLaw,arobotmustobeytheordersgivento
itbyhumanbeingsexceptwhensuchorderswouldconflictwiththeFirstLaw.ThirdLaw,arobot
mustprotectitsexistenceaslongassuchprotectiondoesnotconflictwiththeFirstorSecondLaw.
Table2depictsthetwodimensionsofAIethics(i.e.,ethicsofAIandethicalAI)andhowthe
twodimensionsinteractwithAI,Human,andSociety.TheethicalinteractionbetweenAIsisnew
inthispaper.ThisisespeciallyimportantforAIswithconsciousness.NotonlyshouldtheAIsdo
noharmtohumansandself-preserve,butitalsoshoulddonoharmtootherintelligentagents.
Thus,theThreeLawsofRoboticsmayneedtobeextendedtotakeintoaccounttheinteraction
betweenintelligentAIs.
UnderstandingtheethicsofAIwillhelptoestablishaframeworkforbuildingethicalAI.Figure
1showstheinitialframeworkforbuildingethicalAI.
Table 2. AI ethics

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1.3. why Should we Build Ethical AI?
Recently,CriminalsusedAI-basedvoicetechnologytoimpersonateachiefexecutive’svoiceand
demandafraudulenttransferof$243,000(Stupp,2019).Thisisnotanisolatedincident.PINDROP
reporteda350%riseinvoicefraudbetween2013and2017(Livni,2019).AIvoiceimpersonation
beingusedforfraudisnottheonlyconcern.Deepfake,whichisanapproachtosuperimposeand
synthesizeexistingimagesandvideosontosourceimagesorvideosusingMachineLearning(ML),is
alsobecomingcommon.Withdeepfake,humanfacescouldbesuperimposedonpornographicvideo
contentandpoliticalleaderscanbeportrayedinvideostoinciteviolenceandpanic.Deepfakemay
alsobeusedintheelectioncycletoinfluenceandbiastheAmericanelectorate(Libby,2019).In2017,
researchersfromtheUniversityofWashingtoncreatedasyntheticObama,usinganeuralnetwork
AItomodeltheshapeofObama’smouth(BBCNews,2017).Althoughtherewasnosecuritythreat
fromtheUniversityofWashingtonexperiment,thedemonstrationillustrateswhatispossiblewith
AI-alteredvideos.Fakenewsisanotherconcern.Forexample,anAIfaketextgeneratorwasdeemed
toodangeroustobereleasedbyitscreators,OpenAI,forfearofmisuse.Undoubtedly,advancedAI
agentscouldputindividuals,companies,andsocietiesatincreasedrisk.
Humanrights,suchasprivacy,freedomofassociation,freedomofspeech,righttowork,nondiscrimination,andaccesstopublicservices,shouldalwaysbeputinthefirstplace.However,the
growinguseofAIinthecriminaljusticesystemmayhaveadiscriminationconcern.Therecidivism
risk-scoringsoftwareusedacrossthecriminaljusticesystemshowsincidentsofdiscrimination
basedonrace,gender,andethnicity.Forinstance,somedefendantsarefalselylabeledashighrisk
becauseoftheirethnicity.
Therighttoprivacy,whichisessentialtohumandignity,canalsobeaffectedbyAI.Asbigdata
technologydeveloped,thecollectionofdatainterfereswiththerightstoprivacyanddatasecurity.
Forinstance,MLmodelscanaccuratelysynthesizedataandestimatepersonalcharacteristics,such
asgender,age,maritalstatus,andoccupation,fromcellphonelocationdata.Anotherexampleis
governmentsurveillance.IntheU.S.,halfofalladultsarealreadyinlawenforcementfacialrecognition
databases(Telcher,2018),whichthreatenstoendanonymity.Rightstofreedomofexpression,
assembly,andassociationmayaccordinglybeaffected.Lastbutnotleast,therighttoworkandan
adequatestandardofliving(AccessNow,2018)wouldbeaffected.Automationhasresultedinjobloss
andjobdisplacementincertainindustriesandtherapidadvancementinAIwouldacceleratethistrend.
2. REVIEw oF ETHICAL GUIDELINES, FRAMEwoRKS, AND PRINCIPLES
AdvancedAIwillsparkunprecedentedbusinessgains,butalongtheway,governmentandindustry
leaderswillhavetograpplewithasmorgasbordofethicaldilemmassuchasdataprivacyissues,
machine learning bias, public safety concerns, as well as job replacement and unemployment
rateproblems.Toguidetheirstrategiesindeveloping,adopting,andembracingAItechnologies,
organizationsshouldconsiderestablishingAIethicsframeworks/guidelines.Someinstitutionshave
startedworkonthisissueandpublishedsomeguidelines.Table3showseightinstitutionsthatwork
onAIethicalframeworksorprinciplesandtheirobjectives.Table4showsthecontentofthoseethical
frameworksandprinciples.
Figure 1. Initial framework for building ethical AI
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InTable5,wesummarizedthefrequencyofeachfactorinthoseframeworksshowninTable
4.Wecanseethatdifferentframeworksmayincludethesameorsimilarfactors,butalsoinclude
differentconsiderations.ThestudyofethicalissuesofAIisstillanewareaandmorediscussionis
neededtofinallyestablishtheframeworkofbuildingethicalAI.Inthenextsection,wewilldiscuss
eachethicalissueindetail.
3. REVIEw oF ETHICAL ISSUES IN AI
AI,atthepresentstage,isreferredtoasNarrowAIorWeakAI.WeakAIcandowellinanarrow
andspecializeddomain.TheperformanceofnarrowAIdependsmuchonthetrainingdataand
programming,whichiscloselyrelatedtobigdataandhumans.TheethicalissuesofNarrowAI,
thus,involvehumanfactors.
“Adifferentsetofethicalissuesariseswhenwecontemplatethepossibilitythatsomefuture
AIsystemsmightbecandidatesforhavingthemoralstatus”(BostromandYudkowsky,2014,p.5).
Table 3. Institutions’ works on AI ethics and their objectives

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Theyadoptthedefinitionofmoralstatusthat“Xhasmoralstatus=becauseXcountsmorallyinits
ownright,itispermissible/impermissibletodothingstoitforitsownsake.”Fromthisperspective,
onceAIhasmoralstatus,weshouldtreatitnotasamachine/system,butanobjectthathasequal
rightsashumans.Thetechnologicalsingularity,whentechnologicalgrowthbecomesuncontrollable
andirreversible,ishypothesizedtocomeasAIadvances.Ifithappens,humancivilizationwould
beaffected,androbotrightsandconsciousnessshouldbeconsidered.Buttheseissuesarebeyond
theconsiderationofthispaper.Thefollowingdiscussionmainlyfocusesonethicalissuesrelated
tonarrowAI.
ResearchonethicalissuesofAIfallsintothreecategories:featuresofAIthatmaygiveriseto
ethicalproblems(Timmermansetal.,2010),humanfactorsthatcauseethicalrisks(Larson,2017),
andsocialimpactofethicalAIissues.
3.1. Features of AI Give Rise to Ethical Issues
3.1.1. Transparency
Machinelearningisabrillianttool,butitishardtoexplaintheinnerprocessingofmachine
learning, which is usually called the “black box”. The “black box” makes the algorithms
mysteriouseventoitscreators.Thislimitspeople’sabilitytounderstandthetechnology,leads
tosignificantinformationasymmetriesamongAIexpertsandusers,andhindershumantrust
inthetechnologyandAIagents.Trustiscrucialinallkindsofrelationshipsandaprerequisite
reasonforacceptance(Siau&Wang,2018).
Table 4. Ethical frameworks and principles from eight institutions

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Further,becauseoftheblackboxthathumansarenotabletointerpret,AImayevolvewithout
humanmonitoringandguidance.Forexample,in2017,FacebookshutdownanAIenginebecause
theyfoundthattheAIhadcreateditsownuniquelanguageandhumanscouldnotunderstandthe
language(Bradley2017).WhetherhumanscancontrolAIagentsisabigconcern.Humansprefer
AIagentstoalwaysdoexactlywhatwewantthemtodo.Forinstance,ifaguestasksaself-driving
taxitodrivetotheairportasfastaspossible,thetaximaynotfollowthetrafficrules,butreachthe
airportatthefastestspeed.Thisisnotwhatthecustomerwantsbutwhatthecustomeraskedfor
literally.However,consideringthisproblemfromanotherperspective,ifwetreatAIagentsethically,
isitethicalthatwecontrolwhatactionstheytakeandhowtheymakedecisions?
3.1.2. Data Security and Privacy
ThedevelopmentofAIagentsreliesheavilyonthehugeamountofdata,includingpersonaldataand
privatedata.Almostalloftheapplicationdomainsinwhichdeeplearningissuccessful,suchasApple
SiriandGoogleHome,haveaccesstomountainsofdata.Withmoredatageneratedinsocietiesand
businesses,thereisahigherchancetomisusethesedata.Forinstance,ahealthrecordalwayscontains
sensitiveinformation,whichifnotadequatelyprotected,arogueinstitutioncouldgainaccesstothat
informationandharmthepatientspersonallyandfinancially.Thus,datamustbemanagedproperly
topreventmisuseandmalicioususe(Timmermansetal.,2010).Tokeepdatasafe,eachactionto
thedatashouldbedetailedandrecorded.Boththedataperseandthetransactionrecordmaycause
privacy-relatedrisks.Itis,therefore,importanttoconsiderwhatshouldberecordedandwhoshould
takechargeoftherecordingaction,andwhocanhaveaccesstothedataandrecords.
Table 5. Summary of factors of ethical frameworks

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3.1.3. Autonomy, Intentionality, and Responsibility
Whethertherobotsareregardedasmoralagentsaffecttheinteractions(Sullins,2011).Tobeseen
asrealmoralagents,robotshavetomeetthreecriteria:autonomy,intentionality,andresponsibility
(Sullins,2011).Autonomymeansthatthemachinesarenotunderthedirectcontrolofanyother
agents.Intentionalitymeansthatmachines“actinawaythatismorallyharmfulorbeneficialand
theactionsareseeminglydeliberateandcalculated.”Responsibilitymeansthemachinesfulfillsome
socialrolethatcarrieswithitsomeassumedresponsibilities.Intheveryclassictrolleycase,theone
whocontrolsthetrolleyistheethicalproducer(Allenetal.,2006).Tocontinuetorunonthecurrent
trackandkillfiveworkersortoturntoanothertrackandkillaloneworkerisahard-ethicalchoice
forhumans.WhatchoiceshouldorwouldAImake?WhoshouldberesponsiblefortheAI’schoice?
Themilitaryrobotsthattakechargeofbombdisposalareethicalrecipients.Isitethicalthathumans
decidethedestinyoftheserobots?Humanethicsandmoralitytodaymaynotbeseenasperfectby
futurecivilizations(BostromandYudkowsky,2014).Onereasonisthathumanscannotsolveallthe
recognizedethicalproblems.Theotherreasonisthathumanscannotrecognizealltheethicalproblems.
3.2. Human Factors Give Rise to Ethical Issues
HumanBias,suchasgenderbias(Larson,2017)andracebias(KoolenandCranenburgh,2017),may
beinheritedbyAI.AIagentsareonlyasgoodasthedatahumanputintothem.
AIagentsarebeingtrainedbyhumansandusingdatasetsmadebyhumans,existingbiasesmaybe
learnedbyAIagentsandexhibitedinrealapplications.OncebiaseddataareusedbytheAIagent,the
biaswillbecomeanongoingproblem.Forinstance,softwareusedtopredictfuturecriminalsshowed
biasagainstacertainrace(Bossmann,2016).Thebiascomesfromthetrainingdatathatcontains
humanbiases.Thus,figuringouthowtoprogramandtrainAIagentswithouthumanbiasesiscritical.
3.2.1. Accountability
WhenanAIagentfailsatacertainassignedtask,whoshouldberesponsible.Thismayleadtowhat
isreferredtoas“theproblemofmanyhands”(Timmermansetal.,2010).WhenusinganAIagent,
anundesirableconsequencemaybecausedbytheprogrammingcodes,entereddata,improper
operation,orotherfactors.Whoshouldbetheresponsibleentityfortheundesirableconsequence
–theprogrammer,thedataowner,ortheend-users?
3.2.2. Ethical Standards
“Theultimategoalofmachineethicsistocreateamachinethatitselffollowsanidealethicalprinciple
orsetofprinciples”(AndersonandAnderson,2007p.15).Itistheoreticallyeasybutpracticallyhard
toformulateethicalprinciplesforAIagents.Withoutcomprehensiveandunbiasedethicalstandards,
howcanhumanstrainamachinetobeethical?Further,howcanwemakecertainthatintelligent
machinesunderstandethicalstandardsinthesamewaythatwedo?(WangandSiau,2019a).For
instance,ifweprogramrobotstoalwaysperformnoharm,weshouldfirstmakesurethattherobots
understandwhatharmis.Thisresultsinanotherproblem–whatshouldbetheethicalstandardsfor
harm?Aglobaloruniversallevelofethicsisneeded.Toputsuchethicsintomachines,itisnecessary
toreducetheinformationasymmetriesbetweenAIprogrammersandcreatorsofethicalstandards.
WhileattemptingtoformulateethicalstandardsforAIandintelligentmachines,researchersand
practitionersshouldtrytobetterunderstandexistingethicalprinciplessothattheywillbeableto
applytheethicalprinciplestoresearchactivitiesandhelptraindeveloperstobuildethicalAIs(Wang
andSiau,2018).
3.2.3. Human Rights Laws
Withouttraininginhumanrightslaws,softwareengineersmaywritecodesthatviolateandbreach
keyhumanrightswithoutevenknowingit.Itiscrucialtoteachhumanrightslawstosoftware
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engineers.Ensuringprivacy-by-designisimportantandmorecost-efficientthanthealternatives.
AbetterknowledgeofhumanrightslawscanhelpAIdesignersandengineerseliminateoratleast
alleviatethediscriminationandinvasionofprivacyissuesinAI.
3.3. Social Impact of Ethical Issues
3.3.1. Automation and Job Replacement
ThedebateonwhetherAIageandIndustry4.0(Siau,Xi,andZou,2019;WangandSiau,2019b)
willcreatemorejobsoreliminatesomejobsisstillheated.Storiesoffactoryworkersbeing
replacedbyautomatedsystemsandrobotsabound.SomearguethatAIwillalsocreatemillions
ofnewjobswithmanyofthesejobsthatarenon-existencetoday.Nevertheless,theconcern
isstillthereaboutthefutureworkforcedisruptionsintheageofAI,suchasthecooperation
betweenhumansandAIagents.ThelabormarketwillbedisruptedandtransformedwithAI.
Whatisnotentirelyclearisthespeedandscopeofthechange.Theterm“uselessclass”hasbeen
suggestedbyHarari(2016).UniversalBasicIncome(UBI)hasbeenpilotedinsomecountries
andFreedomDividend,whichisauniversalbasicincomeforallAmericanadultswithnostrings
attached,isthecampaignplatformfora2020U.S.PresidentialcandidateAndrewYang.The
originalintentionoftechnologydevelopmentistoassisthumansandimprovehumanlives.If
automationandAIcausehugejobreplacementandunemployment,shouldwekeeptherapid
paceoftechnologydevelopment?Also,howcanweprotecthumanrightsandhumanwell-being
whilekeepingupwiththerapidevolutionsandrevolutionsoftechnology?
3.3.2. Accessibility
Accessibility,asanethicalprinciple,referstowhethersystems,products,andservicesareavailable,
accessible, and suitable for all people, including the elderly, the handicapped, and the disabled.
Considering the complexity of new technology and high-tech products, as well as the aging
populationsinsomecountries,theaccessibilityofnewtechnologywilldirectlyaffecthumanwellbeing.Technologydevelopmentshouldbenefithumans.Butifonlyaportionofpeoplebenefit,isit
ethicalandfair?Considerationmustbegiventodevelopingsystems,products,andservicesthatare
accessibletoall,andthebenefitsofadvancedtechnologyshouldbefairlydistributedtoall(Wang
andSiau,2019b).
3.3.3. Democracy and Civil Rights
UnethicalAIresultsinthefragmentationoftruthandeventuallossoftrust,andlossofsocietal
supportforAItechnology.Thelossofinformedandtrustingcommunitiesdentsthestrengthsof
democracies.Asdemocraciessufferandstructuralbiasesamplified,thefreeexerciseofcivilrights
nolongerremainsuniformlyavailabletoall.AIethicsneedstotakeintoconsiderationdemocracy
andcivilrights.
Figure2summarizestheaboveethicalissuesinAI.Solvingtheseissuesproperlywillhelpto
establishaframeworkforbuildingethicalAI.
4. DISCUSSIoNS
4.1. From Framework to Practice
Figure2establishestheframeworkforAIethicslistingthefactorsthatneedtobeconsideredindefining
theethicsofAIinordertobuildethicalAI.EventhoughdefiningtheethicsofAIismultifaceted
andconvoluted,puttingtheethicsofAIintopracticetobuildethicalAIisnoeasyfeattoo.What
shouldethicalAIlooklike?Inthesimplestform,wemaydefinethatethicalAIshoulddonoharm
tohumans.But,whatisharm?Whatconstituteshumanrights?Manyquestionsneedtobeanswered
beforewecandesignandbuildethicalAI.ethicalsensitivitytrainingisrequiredtomakegoodethical
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decisions.Intheory,AIshouldbeabletorecognizeethicalissues.IfAIiscapableofmakingdecisions,
howcanwedesignanddevelopanAIthatissensitivetoethicalissues?Unfortunately,itisnoteasy
toimplementinpracticeandtorealize.Long-termandsustainedeffortsareneeded.Nonetheless,
understandingandrealizingtheimportanceofdevelopingethicalAIandstartingtoworkonitstep
bysteparepositivestepsforward.
Manyinstitutions,suchasGoogle,IBM,Accenture,Microsoft,andAtomium-EISMD,have
startedworkingonbuildingethicalprinciplestoguidethedevelopmentofAI.InNovember2018,
theMonetaryAuthorityofSingapore(MAS),togetherwithMicrosoftandAmazonWebServices,
launchedtheFEATprinciples(i.e.,fairness,ethics,accountability,andtransparency)fortheuseof
AI.Academics,practitioners,andpolicymakersshouldworktogethertowidentheengagementto
establishethicalprinciplesforAIdesign,development,anduse.
Withtheframeworksandprinciples,protectiveguardrailstoensureethicalbehaviorsareneeded.
Goodgovernanceisnecessarytoenforcetheimplementationandadherencetothoseethicalprinciples,
andalegalvoidiswaitingtobefilledbyregulatoryauthorities(Hanna,2019).Eitherbasedoncase
laworaccomplishedvialegislativeandregulatoryobligations,theselegalandregulatoryinstruments
willbecriticaltothegoodgovernanceofAI,whichhelpstoimplementandenforceethicsofAIto
enablethedevelopmentofethicalAI.
Toprotectthepublic,theU.S.haslongenactedregulatoryinstruments,suchasrulesagainst
discrimination, equal employment opportunity, HIPAA Title II, Commercial Facial Recognition
PrivacyAct,andAlgorithmicAccountabilityAct.Alltheseinstrumentswouldbeusefulinguiding
thedevelopmentoflegalandregulatorypoliciesandframeworksforAIethics.
Inadditiontothelegalandgovernmentrules,self-regulationplaysanimportantroleaswell.
Communicationandinformationdisclosurecanhelpsocietyasawholetoensurethedevelopment
anddeploymentofethicalAI.Fosteringdiscussionforumsandpublishingethicalguidelinesby
companies,industries,andpolicymakerscanhelptoeducateandtrainthepublicinunderstandingthe
benefitsofAIanddispellingmythsandmisconceptionsaboutAI.Besides,havingabetterknowledge
oflegalframeworksonhumanrights,strengtheningthesenseofsecurity,andunderstandingthe
ethicalissuesrelatedtoAI,canfostertrustinAIandenablethedevelopmentofethicalAImore
efficientlyandeffectively.
4.2. ways to Educate AI to Be Ethical
Moor(2006)indicatesthreepotentialwaystotransferAItoethicalagents:totrainAIinto“implicit
ethical agents”, “explicit ethical agents”, and “full ethical agents”. Implicit ethical agents mean
Figure 2. AI Ethics: Framework of building ethical AI
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constrainingthemachine’sactionstoavoidunethicaloutcomes.Explicitethicalagentsmeanstating
explicitlywhatactionisallowedandwhatisforbidden.Fullethicalagentsmeanmachines,ashumans,
haveconsciousness,intentionality,andfreewill.Animplicitethicalagentcanrestrictthedevelopment
ofAI.Anexplicitethicalagentiscurrentlygettingthemostattentionandisconsideredtobemore
practical(AndersonandAnderson,2007).AfullethicalagentisstillanR&Dinitiativeandoneis
notsurewhenafullethicalagentwillbeareality.
Whenafullethicalagentisrealized,howtotreatanAIagentthathasconsciousness,moral
sense,emotion,andfeelingswillbeanothercriticalconsideration.Forinstance,isitethicalto“kill”
(shutdown)anAIagentifitreplaceshumanjobsorevenendangershumanlives?Isitethicalto
deployrobotsintoadangerousenvironment?Thesequestionsareintertwinedwithhumanethics
andmoralvalues.
4.3. Tradeoff Between AI Ethics and AI Advancement
President-electoftheEuropeanCommissionmadeclearinherrecentlyunveiledpolicyagendathat
thecornerstoneoftheEuropeanAIplanwillbetoensurethat“AImadeinEurope”ismoreethical
thanAImadeanywhereelseintheworld.TheEuropeanCommissionisnottheonlyonethatis
concernedaboutAIethics.ManycountriesarealsoworkingonAIethics.U.S.agenciessuchas
theDepartmentofDefenseandtheDepartmentofTransportationhavelaunchedtheirinitiatives
toensuretheethicaluseofAIwithintheirrespectivedomains.InChina,thegovernment-backed
BeijingAcademyofArtificialIntelligencehasdevelopedtheBeijingAIPrinciplesthatrivalthose
ofothercountries,andtheChineseAssociationforArtificialIntelligencehasalsodevelopeditsown
ethicsguidelines.Manynon-Europeancountries,includingtheUnitedStates,havesignedontothe
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) AI Principles focusing on
“responsiblestewardshipoftrustworthyAI.”
However,themakersandresearchersofAIatthistimearelikelytopaymoreattentiontohard
performancemetrics,suchassafetyandreliability,orsofterperformancemetrics,suchasusability
andcustomersatisfaction.Morenebulousconceptslikeethicsarenotyetthemosturgentconsideration
–especiallywiththeintensecompetitionbetweencompaniesandbetweennations.
Further,whilesomeconsumersmaypaylipservicetoethicaldesign,theirwordsdonotmatch
theiractions.Forexample,amongconsumerswhosaidtheydistrusttheInternet,only12%reportusing
technologicaltools,suchasvirtualprivatenetwork,toprotecttheirdata,accordingtoaworldwideIpsos
survey(CIGI-Ipsos,2019).Instead,themostimportantfactorsinfluencingconsumers’purchasing
decisionsarestillthepriceandquality.Rightnow,consumerscaremoreaboutwhatAIcandorather
thanwhetherallAI’sactionsareethical.
ThissituationmayputcompaniesandinstitutionswhicharedevelopingAIinatradeoffsituation
–whethertofocusonAIadvancementtorealizeprofitmaximization,ortofocusonAIethicsto
ensuresocietalbenefitsfromAIinnovations.
5. CoNCLUSIoN
UnderstandingandaddressingethicalandmoralissuesrelatedtoAIisstillintheinfancystage.AI
ethicsisnotsimplyabout“rightorwrong”,“goodorbad”,and“virtueandvice”.Itisnotevena
problemthatcanbesolvedbyasmallgroupofpeople.However,ethicalandmoralissuesrelatedto
AIarecriticalandneedtobediscussednow.Thisresearchaimstocallattentiontotheurgentneed
forvariousstakeholderstopayattentiontotheethicsandmoralityofAIagents.Whileattemptingto
formulatetheethicsofAItoenablethedevelopmentofethicalAI,wewillalsounderstandhuman
ethicsbetter,improvetheexistingethicalprinciples,andenhanceourinteractionswithAIagentsinthis
AIage.AIethicsshouldbethecentralconsiderationindevelopingAIagentsandnotanafterthought.
ThefutureofhumanitymaydependonthecorrectdevelopmentofAIethics!
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Keng Siau is Chair of the Department of Business and Information Technology at the Missouri University of Science
and Technology. Previously, he was the Edwin J. Faulkner Chair Professor and Full Professor of Management at
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), where he was Director of the UNL-IBM Global Innovation Hub. Dr. Siau
also served as VP of Education for the Association for Information Systems. He has written more than 300 academic
publications, and is consistently ranked as one of the top information systems researchers in the world based on
the h-index and productivity rate. Dr. Siau’s research has been funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation,
IBM, and other IT organizations. He has received numerous teaching, research, service, and leadership awards,
including from the International Federation for Information Processing Outstanding Service Award, the IBM Faculty
Award, and the IBM Faculty Innovation Award. Dr. Siau received his Ph.D. in Business Administration from the
University of British Columbia. He can be reached at [email protected].
Weiyu Wang holds a Master of Science degree in Information Science and Technology and an MBA from the
Missouri University of Science and Technology. Her research focuses on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI)
on economy, society, and mental well-being. She is also interested in the governance, ethical, and trust issues
related to AI. She can be reached at [email protected].
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