Ethics and Governance of TechnologyThe ethics and governance of technology address dilemmas concerning issues such as privacy, bias, and accountability. Key questions include: Who controls data? How do we ensure fairness? What are the societal impacts? Deep Dives The Regulation of Artificial Intelligence in the EU Backgrounder AI regulation is a debated intensively worldwide, with new laws in countries like France, Germany, China, and Canada, and ongoing debates in the US and Brazil. The following backgrounder explains the key issues at stake. By Christian Djeffal Artificial Intelligence and Democracy Backgrounder This backgrounder explores AI's impact on democracy, focusing on three areas: its influence on the public sphere, its role in election campaigns, and the accountability of automated decision systems in public services. By Thorsten Thiel Explainers Who’s to blame when artificial intelligence systems cause damage? Explainer AI systems outperform humans in many fields and have vast potential, but they also cause significant damage. This Explainer reviews the debate on addressing harm caused by AI. By Karni Chagal-Feferkorn Automated Decision Making: A Hidden Blessing for Uncovering Systemic Bias? Explainer Proper systematic audits of automated decision-making can keep algorithms accountable and help systems and institutions understand and address inherent biases. By Gal Yona The Gender Gap in Artificial Intelligence Explainer AI is growing fast with 'smart' machines and automated systems, but it faces a significant gender gap with few women in global AI and data roles. This Explainer highlights the need to close this gap. By Erin Lorelie Young Targeted Advertising – How it Works and Where it is Failing Explainer Targeted advertising, or microtargeting, involves displaying selected ads to a predefined group of users on a platform at auctioned prices. This Explainer highlights the implications and controversies surrounding the practice. By Marie-Theres Sekwenz How to Avoid Harmful Algorithmic Fairness? Explainer Data-driven decision-making can discriminate against minorities. While scientists have developed fairness constraints to counter this, enforcing these constraints may paradoxically harm the disadvantaged group. By Omer Ben-Porat Is the DSA Revolutionizing Algorithmic Risk Governance? Explainer Online platforms shape communication but face moderation challenges. The DSA introduces risk governance for platforms to improve online safety. What are the DSA's procedures and impact? By Christian Djeffal Spotlights Artificial Intelligence and Tort Law: Who Should be Held Liable when AI Causes Damages? Spotlight Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming a prevalent part of our society and commercial market. However, this emerging technology is not without flaws and raises pressing questions of liability. By Anat Lior AI-based Defense Systems – How to Design them Responsibly? Spotlight To safeguard personal freedom and the rule of law, democracies must adapt to "fight at machine speed" when necessary. This means digitization in defense should extend beyond logistics and surveillance to include responsible weapons engagement. By Wolfgang Koch AI and Elections: Observations, Analyses and Prospects Spotlight This Spotlight explores how the ability of AI to disseminate information more effectively is prone to abuse and can pose a threat to democracy. It then discusses the preconditions and potential of AI to support the building of a critical public sphere. By Jessica Heesen
The Regulation of Artificial Intelligence in the EU Backgrounder AI regulation is a debated intensively worldwide, with new laws in countries like France, Germany, China, and Canada, and ongoing debates in the US and Brazil. The following backgrounder explains the key issues at stake. By Christian Djeffal
Artificial Intelligence and Democracy Backgrounder This backgrounder explores AI's impact on democracy, focusing on three areas: its influence on the public sphere, its role in election campaigns, and the accountability of automated decision systems in public services. By Thorsten Thiel
Who’s to blame when artificial intelligence systems cause damage? Explainer AI systems outperform humans in many fields and have vast potential, but they also cause significant damage. This Explainer reviews the debate on addressing harm caused by AI. By Karni Chagal-Feferkorn
Automated Decision Making: A Hidden Blessing for Uncovering Systemic Bias? Explainer Proper systematic audits of automated decision-making can keep algorithms accountable and help systems and institutions understand and address inherent biases. By Gal Yona
The Gender Gap in Artificial Intelligence Explainer AI is growing fast with 'smart' machines and automated systems, but it faces a significant gender gap with few women in global AI and data roles. This Explainer highlights the need to close this gap. By Erin Lorelie Young
Targeted Advertising – How it Works and Where it is Failing Explainer Targeted advertising, or microtargeting, involves displaying selected ads to a predefined group of users on a platform at auctioned prices. This Explainer highlights the implications and controversies surrounding the practice. By Marie-Theres Sekwenz
How to Avoid Harmful Algorithmic Fairness? Explainer Data-driven decision-making can discriminate against minorities. While scientists have developed fairness constraints to counter this, enforcing these constraints may paradoxically harm the disadvantaged group. By Omer Ben-Porat
Is the DSA Revolutionizing Algorithmic Risk Governance? Explainer Online platforms shape communication but face moderation challenges. The DSA introduces risk governance for platforms to improve online safety. What are the DSA's procedures and impact? By Christian Djeffal
Artificial Intelligence and Tort Law: Who Should be Held Liable when AI Causes Damages? Spotlight Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming a prevalent part of our society and commercial market. However, this emerging technology is not without flaws and raises pressing questions of liability. By Anat Lior
AI-based Defense Systems – How to Design them Responsibly? Spotlight To safeguard personal freedom and the rule of law, democracies must adapt to "fight at machine speed" when necessary. This means digitization in defense should extend beyond logistics and surveillance to include responsible weapons engagement. By Wolfgang Koch
AI and Elections: Observations, Analyses and Prospects Spotlight This Spotlight explores how the ability of AI to disseminate information more effectively is prone to abuse and can pose a threat to democracy. It then discusses the preconditions and potential of AI to support the building of a critical public sphere. By Jessica Heesen
