The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

We can define Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a subset of computer science. Its main goal is to copy human behavior and intelligence in a machine or a device. That way they will be able to do tasks that generally can be only performed by humans. One of the things AI systems are programmed to do is learning, planning, problem solving, reasoning and decision-making.

As new digital technologies have emerged, AI and robotics are the fundamental principles they're built upon. They have an enormous impact on how humanity develops. Although they have proven themselves beneficial, they have also raised questions related to risks and ethics.

When it comes to the ethics of Artificial Intelligence Systems, robotics, and many such people become concerned with the risks of the technologies - which is a typical response. Some of the said concerns tend to be absurd. For instance, that new technology is made to destroy humankind only or to change it. People began claiming that smartphones will destroy direct face-to-face communication and so much more.

Although some of them are correct in one way or another, they still seem arbitrary per se. Many of the newest technologies have caused numerous ethical concerns. Self-driving cars, nuclear energy, and plastics have caused in-depth environmental and political discussions about their use.

AI and robotics have been deeply integrated into such topics that now the question of ethics is focused on them. The challenge presents cultural norms and systems, thus opening a new philosophical discussion.

Surveillance and disruption of privacy

One of the most common and general discussions is about the privacy of people. As the world has become more digitized, how we collect and store data is also digital. Our lives have become computerized. Devices all around use sensor technology to generate data about the non-digital part of our lives.

These AI systems increase the likelihood of intelligent data collection. Once it collects the data, it uses it in data analysis. This type of data surveillance is applied to the whole population. But, that doesn't have to be the case as only a selected group can be observed. Then, once analyzed, the data we have not consented on is traded among agents.

Some facial and audio recognition software use our personal information for later profiling. This is how individuals are then searched. Although the Internet is enormous, it has a complete identification and picture of us. This is a scandal that the public hasn't given its attention to. A plethora of the data trail we leave is free for many online communities and services to use it. This means that they are able to collect it, analyze it, and then use it for their own purposes. Then, we are manipulated to leave even more personal data. Facebook, Amazon, Google, Apple, and Microsoft use the collecting data as a way to brand and run their business. This is why they're based on humans' exploitation and their weaknesses, deception, generating addiction, manipulation, and procrastination.
You can see yourself as the primary goal and focus of gaming. Social media - the Internet as a whole, is to draw attention, keep it, and point it to another place. This is how they generate enormous amounts of data.
We can almost say surveilling and observing people is the new business model of the Internet. The economy that arises from only surviving the digital users' behavior and data is known under the name of "surveillance capitalism." This raised the movement of minimalism and decluttering. It showed up as a response to this data collecting capitalism. Although this has been inspiring, and people spend on their devices has been limited, they cannot escape it while fully continuing with their life and work.

Said, we have lost our ownership of the individual data. Many of these systems are built in a way that they reveal information about us. This includes information that we are not aware of or that we suppress.

The problem emerges when the computerized systems know us more than we do ourselves.

Once we view machines as individuals that can observe, sense, and act, it's not a colossal leap to consider their rightful state. Should they be interpreted like creatures of equivalent intelligence? Will we feel the suffering of "feeling" machines?

Some moral issues are about alleviating distress, some about adverse gambling outcomes. While we consider these risks, we should also preserve in mind that, on the whole, this technological development suggests more enjoyable experiences for everyone. Artificial intelligence has immense potential, and its practical implementation is up to us.