Ethically Aligned Design of Autonomous Systems: Industry viewpoint and an empirical study

TL;DR

This paper investigates the current state of ethical practices in autonomous systems through an empirical case study, revealing a gap between academic research and industry implementation, and proposing solutions to bridge this divide.

Contribution

It provides the first empirical analysis of industry practices in AI ethics, highlighting the disconnect with theoretical research and suggesting ways to align them.

Findings

Identified a significant gap between research and practice in AI ethics.

Case studies revealed industry challenges in implementing ethical guidelines.

Proposed strategies to improve ethical integration in autonomous systems.

Abstract

Progress in the field of artificial intelligence has been accelerating rapidly in the past two decades. Various autonomous systems from purely digital ones to autonomous vehicles are being developed and deployed out on the field. As these systems exert a growing impact on society, ethics in relation to artificial intelligence and autonomous systems have recently seen growing attention among the academia. However, the current literature on the topic has focused almost exclusively on theory and more specifically on conceptualization in the area. To widen the body of knowledge in the area, we conduct an empirical study on the current state of practice in artificial intelligence ethics. We do so by means of a multiple case study of five case companies, the results of which indicate a gap between research and practice in the area. Based on our findings we propose ways to tackle the gap.