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Schultz_2022_Spri_AIandEthics
Journal article

Towards AI ethics’ institutionalization : knowledge bridges from business ethics to advance organizational AI ethics

  • Schultz, Mario D. ORCID Ethics and Communication Law Center (ECLC), Facoltà di comunicazione, cultura e società, Università della Svizzera italiana, Svizzera
  • Seele, Peter ORCID Ethics and Communication Law Center (ECLC), Facoltà di comunicazione, cultura e società, Università della Svizzera italiana, Svizzera
  • 2022
Published in:
  • AI Ethics. - 2023, vol. 3, p. 99–111
AI ethics
Business ethics
AI ethics washing
Stakeholder management
Standardized reporting
Corporate governance and regulation
Curriculum accreditation
English This paper proposes to generate awareness for developing Artificial intelligence (AI) ethics by transferring knowledge from other fields of applied ethics, particularly from business ethics, stressing the role of organizations and processes of institutionalization. With the rapid development of AI systems in recent years, a new and thriving discourse on AI ethics has (re-)emerged, dealing primarily with ethical concepts, theories, and application contexts. We argue that business ethics insights may generate positive knowledge spillovers for AI ethics, given that debates on ethical and social responsibilities have been adopted as voluntary or mandatory regulations for organizations in both national and transnational contexts. Thus, business ethics may transfer knowledge from five core topics and concepts researched and institutionalized to AI ethics: (1) stakeholder management, (2) standardized reporting, (3) corporate governance and regulation, (4) curriculum accreditation, and as a unified topic (5) AI ethics washing derived from greenwashing. In outlining each of these five knowledge bridges, we illustrate current challenges in AI ethics and potential insights from business ethics that may advance the current debate. At the same time, we hold that business ethics can learn from AI ethics in catching up with the digital transformation, allowing for cross-fertilization between the two fields. Future debates in both disciplines of applied ethics may benefit from dialog and cross-fertilization, meant to strengthen the ethical depth and prevent ethics washing or, even worse, ethics bashing.
Collections
Language
  • English
Classification
Philosophy, psychology
License
CC BY
Open access status
hybrid
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://n2t.net/ark:/12658/srd1324947
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