(Thinkhubstudio, 2021)
Preface
In today’s rapidly developing 21st century, artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant science fiction and concept. It has been deeply rooted in our daily lives, whether it is the social media behind which we are often exposed. Algorithm recommendation, or in today’s rapidly developing complex systems of autonomous driving, AI is everywhere. Its existence not only provides convenience to our lives, but also vigorously promotes the advancement and development of science and technology and medical treatment. However, with the continuous development of AI technology, people are now facing a series of unprecedented problems and challenges (Russell & Norvig, 2016). The protection of data privacy, the control of algorithm bias, and the future of the human workforce are all issues we must not have in the future. Questions that do not require serious consideration. This article will explore a series of opportunities and challenges brought by AI today, and provide you with some in-depth analysis and insights.
The rise of artificial intelligence
First, let’s talk about the rise of artificial intelligence. The rapid development of artificial intelligence is inseparable from three key factors brought about in today’s society: massive data, advanced algorithms and powerful computing power. In the current digital era, every user’s clicks, searches and other interactive behaviors are recorded by computers and generate data. These big data have become valuable resources for training AI systems. As computers continue to advance in the process of learning user behavior and deep learning algorithms, their systems have been able to analyze and retrieve these data to make predictions, optimize themselves through constant feedback, and become increasingly intelligent.
For example, AlphaGo, developed by Google, made a major breakthrough in the field of Go, which highly reflects the powerful retrieval and learning capabilities of artificial intelligence (Russell & Norvig, 2016). AlphaGo analyzes the chess style of each player by analyzing a large amount of chess data of human chess players. AlphaGo not only masters the basic strategies and essentials of Go from the data, but also discovers new Go moves that humans have never tried before. All of them reflect the super learning ability and computing power of AI in specific fields.
AlphaGo plays Lee Sedol in 2016
But on the other hand, the rapid learning ability of artificial intelligence does not come without any cost in practice. First of all, its over-reliance on data means that if there is a problem with the quality of the data or bias occurs, this will directly affect the AI system’s judgment and decision-making on the problem. For example, if an artificial intelligence system is used to identify potential criminal suspects, but there is racial bias in the data it analyzes and trains, then the system is likely to produce discriminatory misjudgments, causing unnecessary trouble. Secondly, the decision-making process of AI systems is often opaque. This nature of work makes it difficult for us to trace back the reasons, discover the reasons and hold people accountable when AI makes wrong judgments. And with the widespread application of AI technology in all walks of life, people will inevitably be concerned that AI will replace a large number of human jobs, thus causing a series of social problems.
In general, the development of AI technology needs to be developed in parallel with ethics and social responsibilities to ensure that the progress of artificial intelligence serves human beings’ daily lives rather than becoming a stumbling block that restricts our future. And we can respond to this technological revolution more wisely through in-depth exploration of the opportunities and challenges brought by AI, and jointly shape a future that coexists harmoniously with AI.
In the field of artificial intelligence (AI) research and application, both data and algorithms constitute the foundation and core of the AI system respectively. However, both also raise a series of challenges and issues in the development of AI technology, especially in terms of the quality of retrieved data and the identification of biases, as well as the fairness, explainability and transparency of algorithms.
Data: AI is a double-edged sword
Data is the driving force behind the learning and development of AI technology. With the advent of the big data era, people gradually have more capabilities to process and analyze data information, which has greatly promoted the development of AI systems in many aspects. However, large amounts of data are not entirely correct on their own. In the real world, many data are often incomplete or problematic, and some data are even biased (Mayer-Schnberger & Cukier, 2013). For example, if an AI system is used to make a recruitment recommendation, and the training data of the AI system mainly comes from applications for historically male-dominated positions, then the AI system may unfairly tend to recommend male candidates when making recruitment recommendations. person, rather than a female candidate who equally meets the criteria or is more suitable for the position.
In addition, privacy security and ownership issues involved in the process of collecting data and using the system are also one of the important challenges in today’s big data era. Users’ personal information and behavioral data can easily be used by various parties to train AI systems, and in this process, users often know nothing about it or do not have enough control.
Humans must guide AI developments in ways that will uplift us (image by Mohamed Mahmoud Hassan via publicdomainpictures.net)
Algorithms: The core and dilemma of AI
Algorithms are the rules and processes for AI systems to make decisions, and they are usually the core of the AI system (Zobel, 2019). The existence of algorithms allows AI to better learn, adapt and perform complex tasks and retrieve data. However, the operation process of the algorithm is often like a “black box”, and it is difficult for the outside world to see its internal working principles and mechanisms. The existence of this opacity brings many problems, especially when the decisions of AI systems have a direct impact on people’s lives, this uncertainty should often be taken more seriously.
Ethics in AI GETTY
As Safiya Umoja Noble talks about in “Algorithmic Oppression”, algorithms may become tools of social injustice and discrimination (Zobel, 2019). Algorithms are not neutral computing tools but reflect the values and biases of their creators. Especially when algorithms use biased data in their decision-making processes, these biases will be further exacerbated and reflected in the output range of the AI system.
Considered together: the interaction of data and algorithms
Overall, the interaction of data and algorithms in AI systems further complicates these challenges. Biased data will be solidified and infinitely amplified through algorithms, and the “black box” characteristics of algorithms make it difficult to identify and correct these problems in a timely manner. This not only affects the fairness and justice of the AI system, but also has a lot of negative impacts on people’s trust in AI technology.
To better deal with these challenges, people need to take a variety of measures and content. On the one hand, people need to pay more attention to the quality authenticity of data and the representativeness of data, ensuring correct data collection, and respecting user privacy and rights during collection and use. On the other hand, the transparency and explainability of AI system algorithms still need to be continuously improved so that the outside world can understand and supervise the decision-making process of AI systems. In addition, mutual cooperation between different disciplines can be strengthened, and knowledge in ethics, sociology and other fields can be introduced into the research and application of AI, thereby ensuring that the use and development of technology can serve the well-being of the entire society.
Nowadays, the establishment and improvement of artificial intelligence governance mechanisms has become an inevitable issue. In the face of a series of challenges brought by artificial intelligence (AI), national governments and international organizations have begun to take actions to try to establish effective A governance framework to ensure the healthy development of AI technology while also protecting the rights and interests of citizens from infringement. In addition, public participation in the AI governance process is also conducive to the establishment and improvement of mechanisms. Their views and attitudes have a very important impact on forming broad consensus and promoting policy implementation.
(Artificial Intelligence (AI) – United States Department of State, 2023b)
Artificial Intelligence Governance
One of the main challenges facing AI governance is how to find the right balance between promoting technological innovation and protecting citizens’ rights and interests, so as to ensure the development of technology while ensuring the rights and interests of the people. For example, the European Union has proposed a basic response to AI risks, which emphasizes strict supervision of high-risk AI applications, including high-quality requirements for data sets, traceability of results, clear information notification to users, and appropriate measures of human supervision. Through this method, the EU attempts to set different regulatory requirements for AI applications with different risk levels to minimize the negative impacts that AI applications may bring.
At the same time, Singapore’s AI model governance framework also proposes a more flexible set of guiding principles. The framework aims to achieve effective supervision of AI by strengthening the self-management capabilities of enterprises. This framework emphasizes the importance of transparency, explainability, and fairness in AI management systems, and encourages companies to actively consider and resolve possible ethical issues during the development, design, and application of AI systems.
On the other hand, UNESCO’s AI ethics recommendations are from a global perspective and try to call for guidance and assistance for the international community’s cooperation in AI ethics. This includes surveys on data governance, education and cultural diversity, and calls on all countries to jointly address the challenges posed by today’s AI on the basis of respecting human rights and promoting sustainable development.
The role of the public and future paths
In the future, public participation and contribution to the governance of AI cannot be underestimated. People can explore the potential impact of AI technology through education and raising public awareness. It can also promote broad social discussions on AI ethics and safety issues by enhancing the public’s understanding and acceptance of AI applications. In this process, people’s attitudes and expectations towards AI applications can provide an important reference for policy formulation and make relevant policies more in line with the actual needs and value orientation of society.
(Humans.Ai, 2023)
In addition, encouraging and promoting interdisciplinary research and dialogue is critical to solving the complex problems encountered in the governance process of AI systems, and the department needs to promote it through close cooperation between technology, social scientists, policy makers and the public. Exchange of knowledge and experience among people in different fields to build a more comprehensive and effective AI governance system.
In general, the governance of AI is a multi-dimensional and cross-domain complex process, which requires the joint participation and efforts of governments, international organizations, enterprises, and the public. By establishing effective governance mechanisms and encouraging public participation to promote interdisciplinary cooperation, we will promote the healthy development of AI technology and ensure that it brings positive feedback to society.
As we stand at the crossroads of technological progress, the rapid development of AI technology reminds us that while we are full of hope for the future, we must also remain alert to possible challenges. The potential shown by the development of AI in various fields allows us to see a more efficient and intelligent future – a future life scenario in which diseases can be diagnosed at an early stage, education can be personalized, and transportation can be seamlessly connected.
However, the premise of all this development is that people can use AI technology in a responsible attitude and manner. This is not just the responsibility of engineers or developers, but also the responsibility of every member of society. Our development goal is innovation, but this innovation should be fair and just. The process of innovation and development can not only promote economic development, but also promote social progress and continuously improve the quality of life of each of us. Ensuring public participation in this process is crucial. Everyone should understand how AI affects our lives, our work, and our society, and put forward their own opinions on the future development direction of AI to jointly shape the future development of AI.
Conclusion
Just as we are always careful to pay attention to the path under our feet when walking through an unknown forest, we should also move forward cautiously on the road of AI technology development to ensure that every step is in a sustainable and correct direction. Our choices and actions are reshaping our future. Let us ensure that the future is filled with opportunities brought by AI technology and is also filled with the brilliance of fairness, justice and humanity. Let us work together, use wisdom and courage to meet the challenges and arrival of this era, and jointly lead AI technology towards a brighter future.
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