Boost Your Business: The Power of Responsible Innovation
Published on: March 10, 2024
Artificial intelligence (AI) promises transformative changes across various sectors, but its journey is fraught with concerns about safety and bias. Incidents of AI bias in medical algorithms, recruiting tools, and facial recognition systems have raised alarms about the technology's impact, particularly on disadvantaged groups. These issues emphasize the need for proactive and hands-on AI governance.
Shelton Leipzig, a partner at Mayer Brown and leader of the firm's global data innovation practice, highlights the importance of early and constant governance in AI development. As AI technologies can 'hallucinate' or produce unintended outcomes, it is vital to implement governance measures from the earliest stages of development and maintain continuous evaluation to safeguard against potential risks.
Shelton Leipzig, who spoke at the EmTech MIT conference, underscored the significance of AI governance in building trust with customers, employees, and business partners. She proposes a framework for assessing and addressing AI risk, drawing from early drafts of global legislation. This framework categorizes AI use cases into red, yellow, and green lights, guiding companies in their AI governance and decision-making process.
Red-light use cases are those where AI application should be prohibited due to high risks, such as in certain types of surveillance or social scoring. Green-light use cases are generally low risk, like AI in chatbots or customer service. Yellow-light use cases, which constitute the majority, include applications like HR, finance, and healthcare, where the risk is significant, and robust governance is essential.
Shelton Leipzig advises companies to ensure high-quality, accurate data, embrace continuous testing for bias and accuracy, involve human oversight, and create fail-safes for high-risk AI applications. This proactive approach in AI governance allows companies to navigate the complex landscape of AI, balancing innovation with responsibility, and preparing for future legislative developments.