How to reap AI rewards without fearing consequences, dangers

AI has been one of the most pervasive topics in global headlines over the past year, with experts both extolling the much-anticipated benefits of the technology and warning of its dangers.

The result is that in much the same way as people once feared the unpredictable and far-reaching impact of electricity, many in society are now wary of the unknown risks they associate with AI.

It’s a conundrum that has left many business leaders in Africa asking themselves how they take advantage of the opportunity presented by AI while avoiding potential pitfalls.

There can be little doubt that recent advances in AI have forever changed the way we work, innovate and create. So much so that a future, in which every person has an AI Copilot for everything they do, is no longer out of reach.

To develop a strong AI governance system, organisations can begin by establishing guiding principles. Through our own learnings, Microsoft has formulated six principles we believe should guide AI development.

Fairness: Ensuring that AI systems treat everyone fairly and without any bias begins with people understanding the limitations of AI predictions and recommendations.

In the same way, the developers designing and building these AI systems need to understand how bias might affect the final solution.

Privacy and security: It’s critical to ensure that AI systems are compliant with privacy laws that have specific requirements around the way in which data is collected, used and stored.

Inclusiveness: For everyone to benefit from AI, it must incorporate and address a broad range of human needs and experiences. Developers need to adopt inclusive design practices, whereby they address aspects of the product environment that could unintentionally exclude people.

Transparency: When AI systems are used to help inform decisions that have tremendous impacts on people’s lives, it is critical that people understand how those decisions were made.

Accountability: To ensure that AI systems are not the final authority on decisions that impact people’s lives, organisations should develop accountability norms based on industry standards.

Migwi is the Country Manager, Microsoft Kenya.