ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE Just who is in charge around here?
The employment of artificial intelligence is proceeding ever faster all around us – not least in business and commerce. Will its use be driven by purely commercial forces or can we control it to the overall benefit of society? Professor David De Cremer of the National University of Singapore believes we need to aim for AI tempered with humanity.
Q Hello, Professor De Cremer. Thank you for taking the time to talk to us. Just to orient ourselves a little, I wonder if we could start off with rather an obvious question. “Artificial intelligence” is one of those terms that we hear and use quite a lot but, when challenged, we may have differing ideas about what exactly they mean. What, for you, is artificial intelligence? And what is the relationship between AI and algorithms?
A It’s good to always start with a clear definition, because I’ve noticed over the years when studying the results of the surveys that big consultancy companies set out, many executives in their response to questions such as whether their company has adopted AI or not, refer to many examples that technically speaking cannot be defined as AI. So, there is still a lot of ambiguity about what AI actually means and how it can be used.
In my view, the simplest definition of AI is computers showing actions and decisions that seem intelligent. As it is a machine that displays these decisions and actions, we call it “artificial intelligence”. It’s not human intelligence, but it imitates or models it. Computer scientists design algorithms that represent a model in line with specific calculative rules to make predictions. Usually, in the case of supervised learning, this prediction model is based on training data and then used to make predictions with respect to new situations (i.e. new data). In its essence, AI is an elegantly framed version (albeit in somewhat mysterious ways to lay people) of statistics.
Q Could you give us some background on your work at the National University of Singapore Business School Centre on AI Technology for Humankind? What were the drivers to the setting up of the Centre?
The simplest definition of AI is computers showing actions and decisions that seem intelligent. As it is a machine that displays these decisions and actions, we call it “artificial intelligence”. It’s not human intelligence, but it imitates or models it.
A At AiTH, we believe that the development of AI technologies must be understood and examined in the context of collaboration and co-creation with humans. Our aim is to study, explore and develop deep insights into how AI technologies should be advanced with human-centred choices, promoting creativity and happiness whilst serving and enhancing human identity. This may sound a bit abstract, but the main gist is that given the way AI is developing and the amazing, and even wishful, prospects regarding the use of AI, it is necessary to reflect and study that we use AI in ways that benefit humanity. In other words, deciding to adopt AI in your organisations and societies has to be motivated by human-centred concerns. In our centre, we are not obsessing too much about the potential threat to the existence of humanity as a whole, as these horror stories are not a reality right now or in the next few decades, but primarily focus on the question of whether the choice of AI and automation will facilitate the well-being, effectiveness and performance of the human end user. So, we need to find the perfect balance to enjoy the benefits and opportunities of AI, whilst ensuring these advances serve our human identity and values. A fear we do have is that if AI is adopted in rather mindless ways – without a reflective attitude – we can easily start a slippery slope where the way we work, interact and manage our societies will adapt to the way the machine works. And, if this happens, then society will over
