Shweta

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: AN EVALUATION Artificial Intelligence (AI) is powering Fourth stage of Industrial Revolution. Nowadays, AI is the demand of everyone and is it is transforming each and every sector of economy. The use of AI has seen exponential growth and the more AI is used, the more data is generated and the smarter it gets. In just the last decade, AI has evolved with unprecedented velocity. AI is driven by Smart Algorithms which is transforming every sector of economy and just as electricity it enabled us to radically alter virtually every aspect of existence. By harnessing big data, it is driving automation in economy. Some examples are Robotics, 5G, Face Detection, Chatbots, E-payments, Google Maps etc. But nothing comes without risk. Does it? Let us have a look on positive and transformative effects of AI and risks associated with it. Transformative Effects: It is also helping socio-economic impact by eradicating hunger, poverty and disease and opening up new and unimaginable pathways for climate change mitigation, education, and scientific discovery. It has helped increase in crop yields, raised business productivity , improved access to credit and made cancer detection faster and precise which is the biggest achievement of AI. It is estimated that by 2030 it could contribute more than $ 15 trillion to the world economy Google has identified over 2,600 use cases of “AI for good” worldwide. A study reviewing the impact of AI on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) finds that AI may act as an enabler on 79% of all SDG targets. But it will also hinder 35% of SDG targets due to increase in divide in socio-economic factors. So, with this statement let us see what the risks regarding AI could be: AI requires massive computational capacity which means more power-hungry data centres and a big carbon footprint. Robotics and AI companies are building machines that perform tasks typically carried out by low-income workers and this will replace low-income jobs and manual jobs leading to massive unemployment. There is already digital divide is in our country which we all have seen in the present Covid times and this will just increase digital exclusion in society due to expensive technologies which only few can afford. AI also presents serious threats to privacy and data security. The algorithm’s never-ending quest for data has led to our digital footprints being harvested and sold without our knowledge or informed consent. Recent example is threat caused by WhatsApp which is violating the rules of data privacy and Facebook which is selling private data of individuals to third party. It can also perpetuate existing bias and prejudices like AI facial recognition and surveillance technology discriminating against people of colour and minorities. Editing is also creating a much bigger problem which is used by people to create hate among people, to make fun of others and some can destroy life of a person. Conclusion There is a need for Code of Ethics for AI which will help in developing and transforming the country as well as eliminating all the risks which is a threat to society. There should be a right balance between AI promotion and AI governance like NITI Aayog’s Responsible AI for All strategy which recognises that our digital future cannot be optimised for good without multistakeholder governance structures. Code of Ethics for AI should also include environmental and societal well-being; technical robustness and safety; and diversity, non-discrimination and fairness or blackness. (Just to remind that only fair is not fair black is also fair)