Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence

The MIT Media Lab and the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University will serve as the founding anchor institutions for a new initiative aimed at bridging the gap between the humanities, the social sciences, and computing by addressing the global challenges of artificial intelligence (AI) from a multidisciplinary perspective.

The development, application, and capabilities of AI-based systems are evolving rapidly, leaving largely unanswered a broad range of important short- and long-term questions related to the social impact, governance, and ethical implications of these technologies and practices. The Berkman Klein Center and the MIT Media Lab, as anchor institutions of the Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Fund, are conducting evidence-based research to provide guidance to decision-makers in the private and public sectors, and to engage in impact-oriented pilot projects to bolster the use of AI for the public good, while also building an institutional knowledge base on the ethics and governance of AI, fostering human capacity, and strengthening interfaces with industry and policy-makers.

Efforts include a range of research sprints and pilots, community building efforts, and education, training, and outreach activities. Initial core use cases include autonomous vehicles, criminal and social justice, and media and information quality, and will be examined through the lenses of cross-cutting themes, including global governance, diversity and inclusion, and transparency and explanation.

The goal of the Ethics and Governance of AI Fund is to support work around the world that advances the development of ethical AI in the public interest, with an emphasis on applied research and education. The fund was launched on January 10, 2017, with an initial investment of $27 million. The activities supported through this fund will aim to bridge the gap between the humanities and social sciences with computing by addressing the global challenges of AI from a multidisciplinary perspective—grounded in data, code, and rigorous academic analysis. In addition, the work supported by the fund will advance the public understanding of artificial intelligence and enable the creation of networks that span disciplines and topics related to artificial intelligence.

The fund -- projected to operate with a phased approach over the next several years -- will complement and collaborate with existing efforts and communities, such as the upcoming public symposium “AI Now,” which is scheduled for July 10 at the MIT Media Lab. The fund will also oversee an AI fellowship program, identify and provide support for collaborative projects, build networks out of the people and organizations currently working to steer AI in directions that help society, and also convene a “brain trust” of experts in the field.

The Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence Fund will be governed by a small board, consisting of leadership from each participating foundation and institution. There are a number of areas where the deployment of machine learning is already starting to pose questions that are best answered in an interdisciplinary way. This project that we're all embarking on is just the beginning.