Visit hbs.edu

Insights

Tesla breaklight

Ethics and the arrival of decision-making machines

This article originally appeared in Harvard Magazine. On March 18, 2018, at around 10 P.M., Elaine Herzberg was wheeling her bicycle across a street in Tempe, Arizona, when she was struck and killed by a self-driving car. Although there was a human operator behind the wheel, an autonomous system—artificial intelligence—was in full control. This incident, […]

asian-woman-using-mobile-phone-on-the-train-while-traveling_t20_P3PJYR

Defining global digital ethics standards

This post originally appeared in ODBMS Industry Watch.  I have interviewed Giovanni Buttarelli, head of the European Data Protection Supervisor. We talked about the mission of the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), Digital Ethics, AI, China, USA, Tech companies, Democracy and many more… Q1. What is the mission of the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS)? […]

A female pharmacist is examining a vial in a pharmacy.

We should treat algorithms like prescription drugs

This article originally appeared in Quartz. It’s one thing when companies use algorithms to personalize ads for shoes or tag you in a Facebook photo — it’s quite another when algorithms get to decide whether to release you on bail or send you to prison. While many have voiced concerns about using algorithms to inform […]

A justice system run by AI

How and why artificial intelligence is being used in the criminal justice system is coming under increasing scrutiny. Research has exposed the way applications intended to remove human bias are instead exasperating existing inequalities within the system. One of the drivers of this problem is the gap between the decision-makers who are trying to use […]

Colorful folded hands

Why AI can’t afford to discount diversity

How can businesses protect sensitive user data to foster trust among consumers? How can they design products and tools that avoid racial, gender, and other biases towards users? How should they decide who uses their products, and for what purpose? The answers to these and other questions are especially pertinent to the developers of artificial […]

climbing the mountain

Some assembly required: building an interdisciplinary superteam to tackle AI ethics

Technologists, managers, and policymakers all have a seat at the table here. Assembly, a collaboration of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard and the MIT Media Lab, is about creating space for cross-sector teams to crack the code to some of AI’s toughest ethical and governance problems — problems that would otherwise fall out of reach.

Crossroads in the woods

Where fairness ends

The current intense focus on machine learning’s biases is crucial because the issue is not only real, it’s rooted in machine learning’s essence: ML constructs models based on the data we feed it, and unless great care is taken, that data will reflect existing biases. But, focusing on fairness is not enough when addressing the […]

Colorful sticky notes on wall

Can crowds help the U.S. Military stay agile?

U.S. Special Operations Forces are known for their agility. However with expanding activity in the digitally-connected world, remaining agile means being open to new approaches — like working with crowds.

Interview

Two powerful ways managers can curb implicit biases

Many managers want to be more inclusive, but they don’t know how to get there. They are often not given the right tools to overcome the challenges posed by implicit biases. Research shows there are two, small—but more powerful—ways managers can block bias: first, by closely examining and broadening their definitions of success, and second, […]

woman at computer

When online harassment doesn’t follow the rules

Is there a ‘cost’ to online harassment? Is it quantifiable? Beyond the toll it weighs on human victims, the rampant toxicity we see across social networks and communities, does this toxicity affect the bottom line of social networks? Well, in December 2018, Amnesty International released a robust report on online harassment against women politicians and […]

Engage With Us

Join Our Community

Ready to dive deeper with the Digital Data Design Institute at Harvard? Subscribe to our newsletter, contribute to the conversation and begin to invent the future for yourself, your business and society as a whole.