With AI increasingly entering important fields of daily life – with potential threats to the job market and implications for the social security system and future health – Europe’s strategic positioning vis-à-vis other big players China and the United States of America has become important.
Professor Metzinger highlighted the importance of ethics applied to AI as a new domain of research. “Ethics washing”, defined as the increase of non-binding ethical debates, was recognised as a major obstacle to concrete policy regulations.
His message was a plea for new guidelines from the High-Level Group and an authentic statement of their strengths and weaknesses. So far first results from the Group, whilst still industry-dominated, were not concrete enough, were incomplete in terms of unsolved issues and long-term vision but were still considered as the best proposal.
As a deliverable by the Group of 52 experts from academia, civil society and industry, its Ethics Guidelines will become available in the second week of April.
Thomas Metzinger