Forbes study on ethics in the use of AI

The responsible use of AI is becoming increasingly important in the business environment - this is also shown by a current study by Forbes Insights. One thing is becoming increasingly clear: AI has an impact on the everyday lives of all consumers. This makes it all the more important to have an ethical framework, as Rumman Chowdhury, who is responsible for AI at Accenture Applied Intelligence, demands:

"Companies have begun to address concerns and missteps related to AI. This is a positive development, but it is not enough. What is needed are forward-looking, specific and technical guidelines for the development of AI systems that are secure, transparent, traceable and clearly assigned in terms of responsibilities. After all, this is the only way to avoid unexpected consequences and compliance challenges that harm individuals, business, and society. Data Scientists desperately need such policies."

Leading AI companies also recognize the connection between the successful use of this technology and analytics. Seventy-nine percent of these "leaders" say that analytics plays a critical role for AI in their company; only 14 percent of the previously less successful AI adopters say this.

"Those who have implemented AI understand that success with AI and success with analytics are closely related," said Oliver Schabenberger, COO and CTO of SAS. "For these companies, analytics already plays a central role in AI."

Ethics, a big word

According to the study, 70 percent of companies worldwide that already use AI conduct ethical training for their IT employees. Sixty-three percent even have ethics committees to evaluate their use of AI. The AI Momentum, Maturity and Models for Success study, conducted by Forbes Insights with support from SAS, Accenture Applied Intelligence and Intel, surveyed 305 business leaders worldwide, more than half of whom are chief information officers, chief technology officers or chief analytics officers.

The results show a clear correlation between thought leadership and ethical awareness. Companies that describe their AI implementation as successful are also at the forefront when it comes to taking responsibility for AI: 92 percent of leading AI companies (so-called AI "leaders") train their technology experts in ethical issues, compared to just 48 percent of companies that are not yet ready when it comes to AI use.

Trust is good, control is ...

A common - and false - assumption is that AI works without human involvement. The study clearly shows that leading AI companies see technology oversight as essential. Nearly three-quarters (74 percent) report at least weekly reviews of their AI results, while only 33 percent of AI "laggards" conduct such regular checks. Forty-three percent of AI "leaders" have a process in place to revise questionable results (only 28 percent of others do).

Overall, the report brings to light that control processes still have a long way to go before they can keep up with the advances of artificial intelligence.

It stands to reason that companies want to take action on ethical AI and maintain control over AI because they are aware that poor outcomes can reflect negatively on them. Of the companies already using AI or planning to do so, 60 percent say they are concerned about the impact of AI on customer interactions-whether that their actions signal less empathy or that customers may trust them less.

The most important results of the study at a glance:

- 46 percent of AI companies have already implemented the technology extensively. Other companies are still in the experimentation or prototype phase.

- Overall, 72 percent of companies are using AI in one or more business areas.

- Fifty-one percent of respondents using AI point to easier decision making, higher customer acquisition close rates, and increased operational productivity.

- 64 percent confirm that AI allows their employees to focus more on strategic than operational tasks.

Despite these positive effects, nearly 20 percent still feel significant resistance from their employees due to job concerns. 57 percent of employers express specific concerns about the impact AI could have on their relationship with their employees (because employees may feel threatened or overwhelmed).

The complete study (in English version) is available at here ready for download.