Last month I had an opportunity to interview Ms. Irina Raicu, Director of Internet Ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. Ms. Raicu’s work spans a wide array of areas, including online privacy, social media’s impact on society, the digital divide, encryption ethics and AI’s environmental impact and other broader ethical challenges. She was a member of the Partnership on AI’s first working group on Fair, Transparent, and Accountable AI, and she served as a member of the city of San Jose’s first privacy advisory task force.

In our conversation, Ms. Raicu shared her insights on a range of pressing issues at the intersection of technology, ethics, and society. Here are key points from that discussion.

AI’s Environmental Impact

Ms. Raicu emphasized the often-overlooked environmental consequences of AI. She highlighted a day-long conference co-sponsored by the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics and Next 10 on November 1st 2024 – AI and the Environment: Sustaining the Common Good. The conference explored areas such as AI’s environmental footprint, water consumption, Greening AI efforts, business implications, and regulations and laws for sustainable AI development. She highlighted the need to increase awareness of this issue by disseminating information through various channels. The recordings of the conference are on the event page.

Ms. Raicu highlighted the need to balance innovative technologies and environmental impact. She suggested considering technical solutions like using smaller AI models designed for specific purposes. Users should be mindful of personal AI usage and limit energy-intensive applications like image generation. She also noted the importance of factoring in environmental costs in business decisions.

Data Privacy and Misinformation in the Age of TikTok

We also discussed the complexities of data privacy, particularly in the context of social media platforms like TikTok. Ms. Raicu shared her insights on the data collection by companies, governmental access, and the risks of data flowing to other countries. She advocated for better data privacy laws and using encrypted services. She also mentioned that data privacy protection should not solely rely on consumers but should also involve systemic protections.

Ms. Raicu acknowledged the challenges of navigating deepfakes and misinformation and its impact during election years. She advised caution in sharing information and advised to verify content before sharing with others.

Ethical Leadership in AI Development

Ms. Raicu questioned the current “arms race” mentality in AI development and suggested that true leadership involves considering ethical issues like the environmental impact and promoting international collaboration. She recommended having transparent discussions about AI’s limitations and focusing on long-term benefits over short-term profits.

Ms. Raicu underscored the importance of public education and AI literacy. She noted that it’s hard to make good policy without some level of basic understanding. Governments should offer AI education in schools and government agencies. Governments also have a crucial role in promoting ethical AI development by enacting proper laws and regulations. For example, laws that require environmental impact and energy consumption transparency from AI developers. Disclosing the costs of AI development can lead to better choices and further innovation.

Advice for Exploring AI Ethics

Ms. Raicu recommended exploring applied ethics in general and utilizing tools like the Markkula Center’s Framework for Ethical Decision-Making. This framework provides different lenses such as individual rights, fairness, impact/result-based analysis, collective well-being, personal virtues, and caring relationships to evaluate ethical challenges. She explained that while this framework won’t give you a definitive answer, it ensures that you consider important factors that you might miss otherwise. It helps you understand different perspectives and ultimately guides you towards a more informed decision. 

Ms. Raicu’s insights provide a valuable perspective on the complexities of AI ethics. They serve as a reminder that technology should be guided by values that benefit society as a whole.