Tobias Holstein

Gordana Dodig-Crnkovic, Gianfranco Basti, Tobias Holstein

As AI systems increasingly operate with autonomy and adaptability, the traditional boundaries of moral responsibility in techno-social systems are being challenged. This paper explores the evolving discourse on the delegation of responsibilities to intelligent autonomous agents and the ethical implications of such practices. Synthesizing recent developments in AI ethics, including concepts of distributed responsibility and ethical AI by design, the paper proposes a functionalist perspective as a framework. This perspective views moral responsibility not as an individual trait but as a role within a socio-technical system, distributed among human and artificial agents. As an example of 'AI ethical by design,' we present Basti and Vitiello's implementation. They suggest that AI can act as artificial moral agents by learning ethical guidelines and using Deontic Higher-Order Logic to assess decisions ethically. Motivated by the possible speed and scale beyond human supervision and ethical implications, the paper argues for 'AI ethical by design', while acknowledging the distributed, shared, and dynamic nature of responsibility. This functionalist approach offers a practical framework for navigating the complexities of AI ethics in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

Gordana Dodig-Crnkovic, Tobias Holstein, Patrizio Pelliccione

Development of the intelligent autonomous robot technology presupposes its anticipated beneficial effect on the individuals and societies. In the case of such disruptive emergent technology, not only questions of how to build, but also why to build and with what consequences are important. The field of ethics of intelligent autonomous robotic cars is a good example of research with actionable practical value, where a variety of stakeholders, including the legal system and other societal and governmental actors, as well as companies and businesses, collaborate bringing about shared view of ethics and societal aspects of technology. It could be used as a starting platform for the approaches to the development of intelligent autonomous robots in general, considering human-machine interfaces in different phases of the life cycle of technology - the development, implementation, testing, use and disposal. Drawing from our work on ethics of autonomous intelligent robocars, and the existing literature on ethics of robotics, our contribution consists of a set of values and ethical principles with identified challenges and proposed approaches for meeting them. This may help stakeholders in the field of intelligent autonomous robotics to connect ethical principles with their applications. Our recommendations of ethical requirements for autonomous cars can be used for other types of intelligent autonomous robots, with the caveat for social robots that require more research regarding interactions with the users. We emphasize that existing ethical frameworks need to be applied in a context-sensitive way, by assessments in interdisciplinary, multi-competent teams through multi-criteria analysis. Furthermore, we argue for the need of a continuous development of ethical principles, guidelines, and regulations, informed by the progress of technologies and involving relevant stakeholders.