Language translation, facial recognition, and cancer-identifying algorithms are all among the technologies driven by data and interpreted by artificial intelligence that have drastically changed the world in the last ten years.

Despite the advances made in artificial intelligence, Eric Lander, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), and his deputy Alondra Nelson warn of the dangers AI presents. Lander and Nelson title their op-ed, published in Wired, “Americans Need a Bill of Rights for an AI-powered World.”

Limitations of AI

AI is not perfect. The data used to train machines has a strong effect on how machines perform, so flawed data sets are problematic, especially when they are not representative of American society. For instance, flawed data sets have led to errors such as:

Virtual assistants failing to recognize Southern accents
Facial recognition responsible for discriminatory and wrongful arrests
Health care algorithms failing to identify the severity of kidney disease in African-American patients

Lander and Nelson write that machines can perpetuate systemic injustices if the data used is based on prior examples, resulting in sexist hiring tools and racist mortgage approval algorithms. Additionally, they raise concerns over the privacy of AI-powered technologies, calling for more transparency.

What do they want?

During the upcoming months, Lander and Nelson say the OSTP will work on developing a bill of rights to “guard against the powerful technologies we have created.” As a result, they call for a “public request for information” on biometrics, technologies that recognize and analyze faces, voices, heart rate, physical movements, and more. The office wants to hear input from those who encounter biometric technologies in their daily lives, from data scientists to consumers. Lander and Nelson believe that hearing various perspectives will aid in their efforts to develop this bill of rights.

What is an AI Bill of Rights?

In light of artificial intelligence’s limitations and the dangers they pose, such as harming marginalized communities, Lander and Nelson argue that Americans need a “bill of rights” to guard against the powerful technologies we have created. This bill would provide greater clarity into certain rights data-driven technology would respect:

“Your right to know when and how AI is influencing a decision that affects your civil rights and civil liberties”

“[Y]our freedom from being subjected to AI that hasn’t been carefully audited to ensure that it’s accurate, unbiased, and has been trained on sufficiently representative data sets”

“[Y]our freedom from pervasive or discriminatory surveillance and monitoring in your home, community, and workplace”

“[Y]our right to meaningful recourse if the use of an algorithm harms you.”

In practice, the “bill of rights” would mandate federal contractors to use technologies that abide by this bill and prevent the federal government from purchasing software that could violate these rights.

Lander and Nelson write developing an AI bill of rights will be challenging, but ultimately essential for the nation.

“From its founding, America has been a work in progress—aspiring to values, recognizing shortcomings, and working to fix them. We should hold AI to this standard as well. It’s on all of us to ensure that data-driven technologies reflect, and respect, our democratic values.”

Link to original article published 10/26/2021

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Rethinking our Bill of Rights in the Age of AI