TechnoEthics: Ethics and New Technologies

This article provides a brief high level introduction to the topic of ‘Technoethics’, a sub-field of ethics that is focused on both the professionals working on the development of new technologies and the broader social, ethical, and legal issues related to the role and use of technology by society. The importance of this topic cannot be understated.

New technologies often become integral to organizational business processes before many people have fully considered the ramifications of their usage. The following are selected articles discussing the relationship between ethics and the development and deployment of emerging technologies:

 

• Ethical tech: Making ethics a priority in today's digital organizations

• The Many Ethical Implications of Emerging Technologies – Scientific American 2015

• Silicon Valley Raises Questions On Ethics Of New Technology – NPR

Ethics address the issues of what is 'right', what is 'just', and what is 'fair'. Ethics describe moral principles influencing conduct, focusing on the actions and values of people in society, i.e. what people do and how they believe they should act in the world. Technoethics, a sub-field of ethics, is focused on both the professionals working on the development of new technologies and the broader social, ethical, and legal issues related to the role and use of technology by society.

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Ethics: 5 questions CIOs should ask
• The Next Administration Must Get Science and Technology Policy Right

• A Crisis of Ethics in Technology Innovation – MIT 2020

• Big Tech, Out-of-Control Capitalism and the End of Civilization

We really need to take the time to think carefully about the many unintended consequences of new technologies before we unleash them on society. Think about the impacts of social media, robots, artificial intelligence, Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO), nuclear fusion, DNA editing, telehealth, drones, implantable brain-computer interface (BCI) technology…

Selected Links Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at the Santa Clara University Online Ethics Center (OEC) for Engineering and Science Stanford University: Ethics, Society and Technology Hub (EST) TED Talk: Can we protect AI systems from bias? Other TED Talks: Videos on New Technology, New Ethics, e.g. Robots, AI, CRISPR...