{"id":1729,"date":"2026-08-08T16:24:09","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T16:24:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stefan-wagenpfeil.de\/unkategorisiert\/why-do-we-assume-that-ai-knows-what-is-right-and-wrong-why-do-we-believe-that-ai-must\/"},"modified":"2026-08-14T14:25:02","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T14:25:02","slug":"why-do-we-assume-that-ai-knows-what-is-right-and-wrong-why-do-we-believe-that-ai-must","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stefan-wagenpfeil.de\/en\/latest-news\/why-do-we-assume-that-ai-knows-what-is-right-and-wrong-why-do-we-believe-that-ai-must\/","title":{"rendered":"Why do we assume that AI “knows” what is right and wrong?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\nProf. Dr.-Ing. Stefan Wagenpfeil<\/p>\n

6d<\/p>\n

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)? <\/p>\n

Just because we “told” her that, is that it? <\/p>\n

So, let’s be honest…<\/p>\n

How often have we done things even though someone \u201ctold\u201d 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\u2019t touched a \u201chot stove\u201d at least once? <\/p>\n

Try reading a newspaper or listening to or watching the news. Most of it is about things you really shouldn’t do. <\/p>\n

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\u2014\u201cdon\u2019t cross the street when the light is red,\u201d \u201cshare with your siblings,\u201d \u201cbe nice\u201d\u2014but also on a large scale: climate change, wars, \u201cfake news,\u201d Trumpism, and much more. In every book, movie, or game, there are villains who don\u2019t follow the rules. Our \u201cheroes\u201d are often the very ones who break the rules\u2014or at least bend them. <\/p>\n

All of this is training data for the AI…. <\/p>\n

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\u2014in our personal lives, at work, on social media, in politics\u2014the greed for profit, relations between nations (Russia, Ukraine, tariffs, Greenland). Where has that moral compass gone? And even when it does kick in\u2014where\u2019s our response? <\/p>\n

So how do we come to believe that an AI system follows rules? <\/p>\n

And when an AI like that \u201cbreaks out\u201d creatively\u2014searching for loopholes in systems\u2014there\u2019s a huge outcry. But\u2014to be honest\u2014AI is just holding up a mirror to us\u2014only more creatively and more effectively. Even if we don\u2019t like it….. <\/p>\n

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

Sometimes I think we should ultimately be glad if AI\u2019s moral compass is better than our own… because a morally sound AI might conclude that humans today aren\u2019t really doing themselves\u2014or the planet\u2014any favors. <\/p>\n

#computerScientistsAreCool #moralCompass\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
\n Original LinkedIn post:<\/strong> https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/feed\/update\/urn:li:share:7491731891977424896\/<\/a>
\n
Published on 2026-08-08T16:24:09<\/small>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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, Continue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,11,12],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhy do we assume that AI "knows" what is right and wrong? - Prof. Dr.-Ing. 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