A4 Article in conference proceedings
Designing Ethical AI in the Shadow of Hume’s Guillotine (2020)

Saariluoma, P., & Leikas, J. (2020). Designing Ethical AI in the Shadow of Hume’s Guillotine. In T. Ahram, W. Karwowski, A. Vergnano, F. Leali, & R. Taiar (Eds.), Intelligent Human Systems Integration 2020 : Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Intelligent Human Systems Integration (IHSI 2020) : Integrating People and Intelligent Systems (pp. 594-599). Springer. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 1131. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39512-4_92

The research was funded by Strategic Research Council at the Research Council of Finland.

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: Saariluoma, Pertti; Leikas, Jaana

Parent publication: Intelligent Human Systems Integration 2020 : Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Intelligent Human Systems Integration (IHSI 2020) : Integrating People and Intelligent Systems

Parent publication editors: Ahram, Tareq; Karwowski, Waldemar; Vergnano, Alberto; Leali, Francesco; Taiar, Redha

Conference:

Place and date of conference: Modena, Italy, 19.-21.2.2020

ISBN: 978-3-030-39511-7

eISBN: 978-3-030-39512-4

Journal or series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing

ISSN: 2194-5357

eISSN: 2194-5365

Publication year: 2020

Number in series: 1131

Pages range: 594-599

Number of pages in the book: 1295

Publisher: Springer

Place of Publication: Cham

Publication country: Switzerland

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39512-4_92

Publication open access: Not open

Publication channel open access: 

Abstract

Artificially intelligent systems can collect knowledge regarding epistemic information, but can they be used to derive new values? Epistemic information concerns facts, including how things are in the world, and ethical values concern how actions should be taken. The operation of artificial intelligence (AI) is based on facts, but it require values. A critical question here regards Hume’s Guillotine, which claims that one cannot derive values from facts. Hume’s Guillotine appears to divide AI systems into two ethical categories: weak and strong. Ethically weak AI systems can be applied only within given value rules, but ethically strong AI systems may be able to generate new values from facts. If Hume is correct, ethically strong AI systems are impossible, but there are, of course, no obstacles to designing ethically weak AI systems.

Keywords: artificial intelligence; ethics; theory of knowledge

Free keywords: AI ethics; design; Hume’s guillotine

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Related projects

Ministry reporting: Yes

Reporting Year: 2020

JUFO rating: 1