25 Jun Conversational Robots and Code of Ethics
The case of Tay
Do you recall the conversational robot named Tay, developed and deployed by Microsoft in 2016? This robot was withdrawn from the market one day following its promotion on Twitter… It was based on the concept of ‘the more you converse the more intelligent Tay becomes’. But the well-intentioned experiment quickly turned chaotic because of the racist and sexist comments it generated. Some users had coordinated their efforts to abuse Tay’s ability to learn, so that it would respond inappropriately.
Businesses cannot partake in such a risk when using conversational robots, which clearly demonstrates the importance of a code of ethics in the evolution of robots in artificial intelligence.
What is a code of ethics?
A code of ethics is the set of obligations that any professional must comply to in performing their duties. It brings together the fundamental values of the profession and the course of action to be adopted. Businesses also naturally have to follow a code of ethics to maintain their reputation. In a society primarily focused on money and profit, a code of ethics is sometimes lost in the equation. Now imagine, thousands of AI programmed robots all over the planet according to conscience and morals to which we do not adhere, worrying right? …
What is the concept of truth?
A person’s life experiences are the foundation of his/her beliefs. Meaning that truth and code of ethics are a subjective concept that differs from one individual to the other. This on its own is already a polarization of the world which adds to the complexity of developing such concepts in artificial intelligence.
This raises a major issue in the development of conversational robots? What would be the best approach to teach conversational robots based on code of ethics? In this era prone to disinformation often propagated by groups of lobbyists, we must remain vigilant.
Solution and Approach proposed by Innovention
We believe that a robot’s approach should be factual especially in a world where subjectivity in beliefs and attitude reign. This is the approach taken by Innovention in the development of OLIVIA its conversational robot.
Given the spread of fake news all over the internet and great risk this would cause to valuable information provided by a conversational robot, we do not rely on the internet: Information must be checked and verified before it is released.
By making sure to only use information authorized by the company, Innovention ensures that conversational robots developed by companies will disclose relevant information and ensure positive reinforcement of the brand as well as the awareness of the products and services offered.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used by companies to facilitate and optimize diverse operations, from data flow management to trend forecasting. It also provides new business opportunities in many sectors.