A method for ethical AI in Defence: A case study on developing trustworthy autonomous systems

TL;DR

This paper presents a case study on developing trustworthy autonomous systems in Defence, emphasizing ethics-by-design and responsible innovation to ensure responsible and responsive deployment.

Contribution

It introduces a practical approach for integrating ethics-by-design in autonomous system development within a Defence context, highlighting lessons learned.

Findings

Embedding ethics-by-design enhances trustworthiness

Stakeholder engagement improves system responsiveness

Responsible innovation accelerates deployment readiness

Abstract

What does it mean to be responsible and responsive when developing and deploying trusted autonomous systems in Defence? In this short reflective article, we describe a case study of building a trusted autonomous system - Athena AI - within an industry-led, government-funded project with diverse collaborators and stakeholders. Using this case study, we draw out lessons on the value and impact of embedding responsible research and innovation-aligned, ethics-by-design approaches and principles throughout the development of technology at high translation readiness levels.