Le CRÉ est heureux d’accueillir Dominic Martin (McGill), qui nous offrira une présentation intitulée: « Who Should Decide How Machines Make Morally Laden Decisions? »

Résumé:

A new version of the trolley problem is becoming increasingly popular. In this new trolley problem, it is not a human agent who faces the daunting task of deciding whether or not to divert the trolley, but a machine — an artificially intelligent program — whose job it is to drive the trolley. Let us say that the machine just received two signals indicating that live casualties could be encountered on the main track and the side track, and it must now decide what to do.

Another recent thought experiment, called the tunnel problem, raises similar issues. According to this problem, a self-driving car is approaching the entrance of a tunnel when a boy crossing the road suddenly trips in the center of the lane. If the car avoids the kid, it will hit the entrance of the tunnel and kill its passengers. If the car protects its passengers, it will kill the boy.

The question I will address in this conference goes as follows: “who should decide how a machine will decide what to do when it is driving a trolley, a car or, more generally, when it is facing any kind of morally laden decision?” More and more, machines are making complex decisions with a considerable level of autonomy. Self-driving cars are not science fiction anymore. They are in the process of being tested and legalized in many jurisdictions worldwide. We have software that can administer a psychotherapy, write a press release, or even screen students for university admission. We should be much more preoccupied by this problem than we currently are.

Source de l’image.