Can Facebook Prevent Suicide? Ethical Questions Arising from AI

In today’s hyperconnected world, we are generating and collecting so much data that it is beyond human capability to sift through it all. Indeed, one application of artificial intelligence is identifying patterns and deviations that signal intent on posts. Facebook is using AI in this way to extract value from its own Big Data trove. While that may be applied to a good purpose, it also raises ethical concerns.

Where might one get insight into this issue? In my own search, I found an organization called PERVADE (Pervasive Data Ethics for Computational Research). With the cooperation of six universities and the funding it received this September, it is working to frame the questions and move toward the answers.

I reached out to the organization for some expert views on the ethical questions related to Facebook’s announcement that it was incorporating AI in its expanded suicide-signal detection effort. That led to a call with one of the group’s members, Matthew Bietz.

Bietz told me the people involved in PERVADE are researching the ramifications of pervasive data, which encompasses continuous data collection — not just from what we post to social media, but also from the “digital traces that we leave behind anytime we’re online,” such as when we Google or email. New connections from the Internet of Things (IoT) and wearables further contribute to the growing body of “data about spaces we’re in,” he said. As this phenomenon is “relatively new,” it opens up new questions to explore with respect to “data ethics.”

Read more in 

The Ethics of AI for Suicide Prevention

Ford Aims for a Sustainable Supply Chain

Though virtue is said to be its own reward, that doesn’t hold true for business. Ford is very much aware of its image and the effect that can have on customer behavior. In fact, in its press release about making the World’s Most Ethical Company list, it states very clearly:  “Consumers placing increasing importance on ethics in business; recent report shows majority of U.S. learned more about a company before doing business; more than one-third opted not to do business with companies with negative reputations.”

What Ford says its customers want corresponds to what Nielsen published in a report this past fall, “The Sustainability Imperative: New Insights On Consumer Expectations.” It notes that “brands with a demonstrated commitment to sustainability have grown more than 4% globally,” in contrast to those that cannot make the same claims whose growth rate was under 1%.

from 

Committing to Ethical Standards for the Supply Chain

Related post: http://www.baselinemag.com/news/using-data-for-good-is-good-for-business.html

What would Spock do?

from https://lurentis.com/blog/driverless-cars-pandoras-box-now-wheels/

Is there an ethical algoirthm for driverless cars

Say you’re driving at 30 miles an hour when a child suddenly chases a ball right into the path of your car. You would brake if you can stop in time. If you can’t brake you’d swerve to avoid hitting the child. But what if swerving forces you either to hit another car with passengers in it or a truck that would cause harm to those in your car? Does self-preservation override all other consideration? Would we be driven by the emotional pull of saving a child over all else? Or would we be paralyzed into doing nothing because we can’t bring ourselves to take part in any action that causes harm?

These are the types of questions that bring ethics specialists and engineers together in addressing the challenge of directing driverless cars. 

Does Spock offer a solution to the problem? He may, if people would accept Vulcan logic. Learn more in  

Driverless Cars Present Ethical Challenges

A straight pitch?

Today I received the following email (personal identifiers removed):

Ariella,

As you may know, in my capacity as Chief Marketing Guy for The __ __ Project, I help facilitate networking meetings for professionals who are members of ___ with other professionals who I am connected with on LinkedIn and in other networks.
There is a ___ member named ___, [She] is looking to meet and network with (NOT sell to) other professional business women who are serious about their businesses and careers. I was wondering if I can make an introduction and facilitate a networking meeting between the two of you.
Let me know.
Make it a wonderful day. 

I responded that I would just send an invitation to connect on LI, which I did (though I then discovered that the person was there twice, having failed to remove her old profile). I got this response to that:

Ok cool.

Would you be interested in us setting up a meeting  between the two of you?

I declined that honor because I really don't favor in-person meetings. 

He didn't like that and tried to still persuade me by saying, "Really? Why is that? They are extremely effective. I have meetings multiple times a week, and thus grow my network effectively and successfully."

Well, good for him. I happen to be connected to over 1300 people and organizations online, though I've only met a small handful of them. And some people I've taken the time to meet have proven to be a huge waste of my time.  
 I wrote back:
 "Just a matter of personal preference. I don’t mind talking on the phone, and I’ve found it works just as well." 

He finally dropped the matter. The fact that he was so keen on the meeting, though, makes me suspect that the woman he was contacting was not just trying to meet other professionals but to try to sell her services to them. That is what she does professionally, marketing.  And that would make the original claim that said "(NOT sell to) false." In fact, likely that's what he was being paid to do, procure prospective clients for her under the guise of setting up networking.

What makes this even more suspect is that the guy who claims he loves meetings hasn't even met the person he's promoting! I sent her a message about the pitch via LinkedIn and she said that someone else at the same organization is trying to set up a meeting between him and her. Hmm...