Artificial Intelligence has been framed by technologists to be the next step in technological innovation, however, questions remain on its ethical implications in society. Alexander Fefegha, technologist and co-founder of Comuzi design & innovation studio, investigates the ethical implications of Artificial Intelligence’s “invasion” in our everyday lives, and more specifically the race and gender biases. What happens when they “sneak” into the algorithms and affect important decisions, such as court sentences? Can AI systems carry racial or gender-based prejudices? Should we worry about it or are there effective ways to ensure the principles of equality and fairness are respected?
Bias in the AI systems mainly occurs in the data or in the algorithmic model, as the quality of the data used to train these systems determines their impartiality. Bad data can contain implicit racial, gender, or other biases. Many artificial intelligence systems have been trained and continue to be trained using data of questionable quality. Alexander Fefegha, during his speech at the Athens Re-Science Festival, will refer, among other things, to the measures we can take to limit the negative impact of such systems and on the importance of training present and future AI systems with data that is unbiased.
Alexander is the co-founder & head of making at Comuzi, a design & innovation studio, working at the intersection of emerging technology and humans. Some of Comuzi’s clients include Nike, ASOS, Uber, BBC, University of Arts London, Ustwo, Waltham Forest Council and the NHS. Alex’s work has been recognised internationally in recent times for his work investigating the ethical implications of AI, algorithmic bias in regards to race and gender and exploring the future technological interfaces that we as humans will interact with. Alex holds a Masters degree in Innovation from Central St Martins.
Title: Racial and gender bias in AI systems // Date&Time: Saturday 6 April 2019, 20.30
Alexander Fefegha’s talk will take place with the support of the British Council.
