As artificial intelligence (AI) is adopted across industries, governments and stakeholders are grappling with ethical and legal frameworks to ensure automation doesn’t adversely affect human populations. Several associations have developed ethical standards and regulatory proposals for AI—including in the supply chain industry.
The Data Ethics Commission report[1] focused on two aspects of digitization and automation: data management and algorithmic systems. The section on data deals with the type of information processed, how it should be processed, and the balance of power between the parties involved. For algorithmic systems, the authors of the report focused on machine learning and algorithmic decision-making. The guiding principles of the group are somewhat encapsulated in this quote:
“If we want to ensure that digital transformation serves the good of society as a whole, both society itself and its elected political representatives must engage in a debate on how to use and shape data-based technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI).”