Al: A double edged sword

By: ،Babiker Mohammed
Digital Analyst

From disinformation to systemic bias, there seems to be a real threat to societal trust and security. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere these days, transforming how we live and work. From personalized recommendations to self-driving cars, it’s hard to ignore the benefits. But as much as Al excites me, I can’t help but worry about the dangers it brings. It’s not all smooth sailing there are in fact real risks we need to worry about.

Al bias remains one of the biggest issues and it’s easy to understand why. Al learns from data, and if that data is biased, the results will be too. Take facial recognition, for example. Studies have shown that these systems are far less accurate for people of color. In 2019, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) found that Asian and African American faces were up to 100 times more likely to be misidentified than white faces. But it is not to say that there’s a racial problem, it’s to highlight how technology maybe fueling a racial issue. Then there’s the fear of job loss. Al and automation are already replacing human workers in many fields such as self-checkout kiosks, automated customer service, and even Al-driven journalism are becoming more common.

Finally, there’s the question of accountability. When something goes wrong with Al, who’s to blame? In 2018, an Uber self-driving car hit and killed a pedestrian. Was it the fault of the company, the software, or the human backup driver? These are tough questions without clear answers.