Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and Robotics
Societies of the East are often contrasted with those of the West in their stances toward technology. This paper explores these perceived differences in the context of international ethics guidance for artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. Japan serves as an example of the East, while Europe an...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | AI |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-2688/3/3/45 |
| _version_ | 1797492128092258304 |
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| author | Nancy S. Jecker Eisuke Nakazawa |
| author_facet | Nancy S. Jecker Eisuke Nakazawa |
| author_sort | Nancy S. Jecker |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Societies of the East are often contrasted with those of the West in their stances toward technology. This paper explores these perceived differences in the context of international ethics guidance for artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. Japan serves as an example of the East, while Europe and North America serve as examples of the West. The paper’s principal aim is to demonstrate that Western values predominate in international ethics guidance and that Japanese values serve as a much-needed corrective. We recommend a hybrid approach that is more inclusive and truly ‘international’. Following an introduction, the paper examines distinct stances toward robots that emerged in the West and Japan, respectively, during the aftermath of the Second World War, reflecting history and popular culture, socio-economic conditions, and religious worldviews. It shows how international ethics guidelines reflect these disparate stances, drawing on a 2019 scoping review that examined 84 international AI ethics documents. These documents are heavily skewed toward precautionary values associated with the West and cite the optimistic values associated with Japan less frequently. Drawing insights from Japan’s so-called ‘moonshot goals’, the paper fleshes out Japanese values in greater detail and shows how to incorporate them more effectively in international ethics guidelines for AI and robotics. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:58:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ebffc1212a964c93b398296755ab1f14 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2673-2688 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:58:12Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | AI |
| spelling | doaj.art-ebffc1212a964c93b398296755ab1f142023-11-23T14:39:52ZengMDPI AGAI2673-26882022-09-013376477710.3390/ai3030045Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and RoboticsNancy S. Jecker0Eisuke Nakazawa1Department of Bioethics and Humanities, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195-7120, USADepartment of Bioethics and Humanities, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA 98195-7120, USASocieties of the East are often contrasted with those of the West in their stances toward technology. This paper explores these perceived differences in the context of international ethics guidance for artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. Japan serves as an example of the East, while Europe and North America serve as examples of the West. The paper’s principal aim is to demonstrate that Western values predominate in international ethics guidance and that Japanese values serve as a much-needed corrective. We recommend a hybrid approach that is more inclusive and truly ‘international’. Following an introduction, the paper examines distinct stances toward robots that emerged in the West and Japan, respectively, during the aftermath of the Second World War, reflecting history and popular culture, socio-economic conditions, and religious worldviews. It shows how international ethics guidelines reflect these disparate stances, drawing on a 2019 scoping review that examined 84 international AI ethics documents. These documents are heavily skewed toward precautionary values associated with the West and cite the optimistic values associated with Japan less frequently. Drawing insights from Japan’s so-called ‘moonshot goals’, the paper fleshes out Japanese values in greater detail and shows how to incorporate them more effectively in international ethics guidelines for AI and robotics.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-2688/3/3/45artificial intelligenceethicsroboticsJapanphilosophy of technologyinternational ethics |
| spellingShingle | Nancy S. Jecker Eisuke Nakazawa Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and Robotics AI artificial intelligence ethics robotics Japan philosophy of technology international ethics |
| title | Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and Robotics |
| title_full | Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and Robotics |
| title_fullStr | Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and Robotics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and Robotics |
| title_short | Bridging East-West Differences in Ethics Guidance for AI and Robotics |
| title_sort | bridging east west differences in ethics guidance for ai and robotics |
| topic | artificial intelligence ethics robotics Japan philosophy of technology international ethics |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-2688/3/3/45 |
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