5 Safety and Reliability

Organisations that develop, deploy or use AI systems and any national laws that regulate such use shall adopt design regimes and standards ensuring high safety and reliability of AI systems on one hand while limiting the exposure of developers and deployers on the other hand.
Principle: The Eight Principles of Responsible AI, May 23, 2019

Published by International Technology Law Association (ITechLaw)

Related Principles

7 Privacy

Organisations that develop, deploy or use AI systems and any national laws that regulate such use shall endeavour to ensure that AI systems are compliant with privacy norms and regulations, taking into account the unique characteristics of AI systems, and the evolution of standards on privacy.

Published by International Technology Law Association (ITechLaw) in The Eight Principles of Responsible AI, May 23, 2019

1. Principle of collaboration

Developers should pay attention to the interconnectivity and interoperability of AI systems. [Comment] Developers should give consideration to the interconnectivity and interoperability between the AI systems that they have developed and other AI systems, etc. with consideration of the diversity of AI systems so that: (a) the benefits of AI systems should increase through the sound progress of AI networking; and that (b) multiple developers’ efforts to control the risks should be coordinated well and operate effectively. For this, developers should pay attention to the followings: • To make efforts to cooperate to share relevant information which is effective in ensuring interconnectivity and interoperability. • To make efforts to develop AI systems conforming to international standards, if any. • To make efforts to address the standardization of data formats and the openness of interfaces and protocols including application programming interface (API). • To pay attention to risks of unintended events as a result of the interconnection or interoperations between AI systems that they have developed and other AI systems, etc. • To make efforts to promote open and fair treatment of license agreements for and their conditions of intellectual property rights, such as standard essential patents, contributing to ensuring the interconnectivity and interoperability between AI systems and other AI systems, etc., while taking into consideration the balance between the protection and the utilization with respect to intellectual property related to the development of AI. [Note] The interoperability and interconnectivity in this context expects that AI systems which developers have developed can be connected to information and communication networks, thereby can operate with other AI systems, etc. in mutually and appropriately harmonized manners.

Published by Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), the Government of Japan in AI R&D Principles, Jul 28, 2017

4. Principle of safety

Developers should take it into consideration that AI systems will not harm the life, body, or property of users or third parties through actuators or other devices. [Comment] AI systems which are supposed to be subject to this principle are such ones that might harm the life, body, or property of users or third parties through actuators or other devices. It is encouraged that developers refer to relevant international standards and pay attention to the followings, with particular consideration of the possibility that outputs or programs might change as a result of learning or other methods of AI systems: ● To make efforts to conduct verification and validation in advance in order to assess and mitigate the risks related to the safety of the AI systems. ● To make efforts to implement measures, throughout the development stage of AI systems to the extent possible in light of the characteristics of the technologies to be adopted, to contribute to the intrinsic safety (reduction of essential risk factors such as kinetic energy of actuators) and the functional safety (mitigation of risks by operation of additional control devices such as automatic braking) when AI systems work with actuators or other devices. And ● To make efforts to explain the designers’ intent of AI systems and the reasons for it to stakeholders such as users, when developing AI systems to be used for making judgments regarding the safety of life, body, or property of users and third parties (for example, such judgments that prioritizes life, body, property to be protected at the time of an accident of a robot equipped with AI).

Published by Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), the Government of Japan in AI R&D Principles, Jul 28, 2017

· 2. RESPONSIBILITY MUST BE FULLY ACKNOWLEDGED WHEN CREATING AND USING AI

2.1. Risk based approach. The degree of attention paid to ethical AI issues and the nature of the relevant actions of AI Actors should be proportional to the assessment of the level of risk posed by specific AI technologies and systems for the interests of individuals and society. Risk level assessment shall take into account both known and possible risks, whereby the probability level of threats, as well as their possible scale in the short and long term shall be considered. Making decisions in the field of AI use that significantly affect society and the state should be accompanied by a scientifically verified, interdisciplinary forecast of socio economic consequences and risks and examination of possible changes in the paradigm of value and cultural development of the society. Development and use of an AI systems risk assessment methodology are encouraged in pursuance of this Code. 2.2. Responsible attitude. AI Actors should responsibly treat: • issues related to the influence of AI systems on society and citizens at every stage of the AI systems’ life cycle, i.a. on privacy, ethical, safe and responsible use of personal data; • the nature, degree and extent of damage that may result from the use of AI technologies and systems; • the selection and use of hardware and software utilized in different life cycles of AI systems. At the same time, the responsibility of AI Actors should correspond with the nature, degree and extent of damage that may occur as a result of the use of AI technologies and systems. The role in the life cycle of the AI system, as well as the degree of possible and real influence of a particular AI Actor on causing damage and its extent, should also be taken into account. 2.3. Precautions. When the activities of AI Actors can lead to morally unacceptable consequences for individuals and society, which can be reasonably predicted by the relevant AI Actor, the latter, should take measures to prohibit or limit the occurrence of such consequences. AI Actors shall use the provisions of this Code, including the mechanisms specified in Section 2, to assess the moral unacceptability of such consequences and discuss possible preventive measures. 2.4. No harm. AI Actors should not allow the use of AI technologies for the purpose of causing harm to human life and or health, the property of citizens and legal entities and the environment. Any use, including the design, development, testing, integration or operation of an AI system capable of purposefully causing harm to the environment, human life and or health, the property of citizens and legal entities, is prohibited. 2.5. Identification of AI in communication with a human. AI Actors are encouraged to ensure that users are duly informed of their interactions with AI systems when it affects human rights and critical areas of people’s lives and to ensure that such interaction can be terminated at the request of the user. 2.6. Data security. AI Actors must comply with the national legislation in the field of personal data and secrets protected by law when using AI systems; ensure the security and protection of personal data processed by AI systems or by AI Actors in order to develop and improve the AI systems; develop and integrate innovative methods to counter unauthorized access to personal data by third parties and use high quality and representative datasets obtained without breaking the law from reliable sources. 2.7. Information security. AI Actors should ensure the maximum possible protection from unauthorized interference of third parties in the operation of AI systems; integrate adequate information security technologies, i.a. use internal mechanisms designed to protect the AI system from unauthorized interventions and inform users and developers about such interventions; as well as promote the informing of users about the rules of information security during the use of AI systems. 2.8. Voluntary certification and Code compliance. AI Actors may implement voluntary certification systems to assess the compliance of developed AI technologies with the standards established by the national legislation and this Code. AI Actors may create voluntary certification and labeling systems for AI systems to indicate that these systems have passed voluntary certification procedures and confirm quality standards. 2.9. Control of the recursive self improvement of AI systems. AI Actors are encouraged to cooperate in identifying and verifying information about ways and forms of design of so called universal ("general") AI systems and prevention of possible threats they carry. The issues concerning the use of "general" AI technologies should be under the control of the state.

Published by AI Alliance Russia in AI Ethics Code (revised version), Oct 21, 2022 (unconfirmed)

· 6. MAXIMUM TRANSPARENCY AND RELIABILITY OF INFORMATION CONCERNING THE LEVEL OF AI TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPMENT, THEIR CAPABILITIES AND RISKS ARE CRUCIAL

6.1. Reliability of information about AI systems. AI Actors are encouraged to provide AI systems users with reliable information about the AI systems and most effective methods of their use, harms, benefits acceptable areas and existing limitations of their use. 6.2. Awareness raising in the field of ethical AI application. AI Actors are encouraged to carry out activities aimed at increasing the level of trust and awareness of the citizens who use AI systems and the society at large, in the field of technologies being developed, the specifics of ethical use of AI systems and other issues related to AI systems development by all available means, i.a. by working on scientific and journalistic publications, organizing scientific and public conferences or seminars, as well as by adding the provisions about ethical behavior to the rules of AI systems operation for users and (or) operators, etc.

Published by AI Alliance Russia in AI Ethics Code (revised version), Oct 21, 2022 (unconfirmed)