New Practices Needed for Trustworthy AI - Some Expert Commentary
Brian Green says boards and executives may need a little motivation to forward efforts such as regulatory overreach to keep AI trustworthy.
In an ideal world, everyone would just do the right thing, no governance would be necessary, and tech products would always be beneficial. The next best world is one where tech companies act as another layer of defense for the public good, self-regulating and achieving the same good end. And the most realistic world is one in which government will step in as a third layer of defense because neither individuals nor corporations are reliable enough. We need all of those layers - individuals, corporations, and governments - to work together to assure the beneficial promise of tech for society.
Ann Gregg Skeet, senior director, leadership ethics believes organizations might coalesce around a set of guidance for machine learning systems, but remains skeptical this will happen without industry certification practices. She argues:
As much as I would like to believe such common practices can be developed and required, the medical and financial professions have something that the AI industry does not have, namely a certification process for the professionals in it. The Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Mr. O’Reilly references are upheld by certified public accountants or CPAs. Doctors are also board-certified. At least for now, no such certification process exists for people building AI systems. Certification processes align interests by specifying professional ethical standards. Doctors and CPAs understand that certain actions and behaviors are expected of them and that failing to act in a way that meets the standards of their profession could result in losing their certifications. In this way, they have a commitment to their profession that is even more significant than any commitment they might make to an organization they are working for. There is not yet such a set of commitments that people in the AI industry are making to a single set of standards.
Brian Patrick Green, director, technology ethics and Ann Gregg Skeet, senior director, leadership ethics, quoted by Diginomica.