AI ethics is the study of how artificial intelligence should be designed, built and used so that it respects people and avoids harm. It matters because AI systems now influence hiring, lending, policing, healthcare and what we see online, often at a scale and speed that make mistakes hard to catch.
The lessons begin with a short definition of the field and the principles it is usually built on, such as fairness, transparency, privacy, accountability and safety. You then look at real examples of algorithmic bias and the wider ethical questions that AI raises, including who decides how these systems behave and who is affected when they fail.
Keep a running list of the questions that come up, because the rest of the course takes them one at a time. The module ends with a look at why AI ethics draws so heavily on philosophy, which leads into the moral theories in the next module. Watch the lessons in order, then continue on to Ethical Foundations & Frameworks.
A short IBM Technology explainer on what AI ethics means, why it matters and the principles organizations use to guide responsible AI.
Video 6minA talk that poses six of the biggest ethical questions raised by AI, useful for framing the rest of the course.
Video 14minJoy Buolamwini explains how facial analysis software failed to detect her face, and why she calls algorithmic bias the “coded gaze”. A short TED talk.
Video 8minA DW Documentary that explores the ethical questions raised as artificial intelligence moves into everyday life.
Video 42minA Code.org panel that brings several voices together to discuss the ethics of AI, including how it affects young people and learners.
Video 49minLooks at why the rise of AI has pushed old philosophical questions back into practical debate, setting up the moral frameworks in the next module.
Video 17min