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情色空间 faculty discuss AI and the responsible exercise of power
Three Boston College faculty members were among 70 international
stakeholders participating in the fourth annual Business Ethics Summit at Vatican City鈥檚 Pontifical Academy of Sciences. The June convening was designed to address the question of how to exercise power responsibly in a world transformed by technology.
Titled 鈥淭he Humility of Power: Ignorance, Error, and Responsibility in High-Impact Technology,鈥� the event, for which Boston College was the exclusive academic partner, was focused on the role of ethics amid the increasing impact of artificial intelligence on economic and social processes.
Without the separation of good from evil, "corporate policies collapse into mere self-interest," Fr. Larrey told the gathering in his opening remarks. (Giacomo Foti)
Summit co-founder Fr. Philip Larrey, a professor of the practice in 情色空间's Department of Philosophy whose research areas include the impact of the digital era on society, delivered the day鈥檚 opening lecture, titled 鈥淪ocrates, Ignorance and the Humility of Power.鈥�
鈥淭he bedrock of all business ethics rests upon a fundamental, timeless distinction: The separation of good from evil,鈥� Fr. Larrey said.聽 鈥淲ithout this primary criteria, corporate policies collapse into mere self-interest, leaving organizations directionless when confronting complex moral challenges.
"Corporate decisions are not made in a vacuum," he said. "Using tools of ethical discernment, we can evaluate the motives, actions, and long-term consequences of today鈥檚 executive choices, laying down a highly accountable pathway for tomorrow鈥檚 business leaders.鈥�
In Socratic style, the convening鈥檚 format was structured around critical questions.
Brian K. Smith: 鈥淚f we're wise, we'll move beyond the focus on how to 鈥榮top kids from cheating鈥� to deeper considerations." (Giacomo Foti)
Brian K. Smith鈥攖he Honorable David S. Nelson Professor and associate dean for research at 情色空间's Lynch School of Education and Human Development and a professor in its Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Computer Science Department鈥攚as one of the experts selected to address the first session鈥檚 thought-provoking question: What becomes uniquely human when intelligence becomes abundant, and more specifically, how does it relate to the demographic who will succeed us?
鈥淵oung people are seriously concerned about AI鈥檚 impact on work and jobs鈥攑articularly job loss鈥攁nd their backlash was very apparent during U.S. university commencements this spring when speakers were booed for their AI rhetoric,鈥� said Smith, whose research interests include the design of computer-based learning environments and human-computer interaction. 鈥淲e're at an interesting moment where we need to hear and consider diverse viewpoints on technology adoption. We need to include the next generation in conversations about their future; we don't necessarily use technology in the same ways they do, so we need to get their perspectives, and importantly, we need to be humble about what we can learn from those in less powerful positions.鈥�
Smith noted that the best thing about ChatGPT and similar "intelligent" machines is that people are having more conversations about what it means to educate the next generation.
鈥淚f we're wise, we'll move beyond the focus on how to 鈥榮top kids from cheating鈥� to deeper considerations about pedagogy, assessment, and professional development,鈥� he said. 鈥淢ore significantly, AI tools can help us think more deeply about the purpose of education and what we want the next generation to become.鈥�
Aleksandar Tomic: 鈥淭he question of the 20th century was 'what happens when machines want our jobs?'; Now it's 'what happens when the jobs have no humans left to do them?'" (Giacomo Foti)
Economist Aleksandar (Sasha) Tomic鈥攁ssociate dean for strategic initiatives and external affairs at the Woods College of Advancing Studies and senior director of its graduate programs in applied economics and applied analytics, which recently hosted a conference on human-centered AI鈥攚as among select speakers exploring the question: What are we too certain about?
鈥淟et me name the certainty I have come to distrust,鈥� Tomic said. 鈥淔or 40 years, the settled fear about robotics and automation has been that machines are coming for our work. That alarm rests on an assumption so deep we rarely say it aloud: That there will always be enough people to do the work. That supposition has already failed.
鈥淟ast year, Italy recorded just 355,000 births鈥攖he fewest since Italian unification in 1861鈥攁 fertility rate of 1.14 children per woman, and 12 funerals for every seven baptisms. The Italian National Institute of Statistics projects Italy could lose nearly one tenth of its population by mid-century.
鈥淚taly is not the exception; it is the preview,鈥� said Tomic,聽who holds courtesy appointments as professor of the practice in both 情色空间's Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences and Carroll School of Management. 鈥淭he question of the 20th century was 'what happens when machines want our jobs?'; Now it's 'what happens when the jobs have no humans left to do them?' My answer to this session's question is that we are not too certain that artificial intelligence is moving too fast; we are, however, too certain about where the danger lies.鈥�
The ,聽co-founded by Cristiana Falcone-Sorell, a global strategic advisor, board director, and philanthropist, was initiated by Rome-based corporate communications firm Corelations.