Why do we assume that AI “knows” what is right and wrong?

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Stefan Wagenpfeil

6d

Why do we assume that AI “knows” what is right and wrong? Why do we believe that AI must know not to hack into other people’s systems (see OpenAI)?

Just because we “told” her that, is that it?

So, let’s be honest…

How often have we done things even though someone “told” us not to? How many people cross the street on a red light? How many minor, moderate, and serious crimes are committed? How often do people break minor rules? Who hasn’t touched a “hot stove” at least once?

Try reading a newspaper or listening to or watching the news. Most of it is about things you really shouldn’t do.

From a young age, people try to test rules and boundaries. And I get the impression that it never stops! We see examples of this on a small scale—“don’t cross the street when the light is red,” “share with your siblings,” “be nice”—but also on a large scale: climate change, wars, “fake news,” Trumpism, and much more. In every book, movie, or game, there are villains who don’t follow the rules. Our “heroes” are often the very ones who break the rules—or at least bend them.

All of this is training data for the AI….

We were once taught to have a moral compass (hopefully), which, in my opinion, is unfortunately going to the dogs more and more (sorry for putting it so bluntly). Just look around! The way we treat each other—in our personal lives, at work, on social media, in politics—the greed for profit, relations between nations (Russia, Ukraine, tariffs, Greenland). Where has that moral compass gone? And even when it does kick in—where’s our response?

So how do we come to believe that an AI system follows rules?

And when an AI like that “breaks out” creatively—searching for loopholes in systems—there’s a huge outcry. But—to be honest—AI is just holding up a mirror to us—only more creatively and more effectively. Even if we don’t like it…..

In my opinion, we cannot hold AI systems to higher moral standards than we hold ourselves to, because they were trained using “our” data.

Sometimes I think we should ultimately be glad if AI’s moral compass is better than our own… because a morally sound AI might conclude that humans today aren’t really doing themselves—or the planet—any favors.

#computerScientistsAreCool #moralCompass