IndiaAI has invited expressions of interest (EOI) for collaborative proposals for undertaking ‘safe & trusted’ AI projects, including establishing ethical AI frameworks and creating AI risk assessment and management tools and deepfake detection tools.

AI Ethics

• Definition: AI ethics is the multidisciplinary study of moral principles applied to AI systems, focusing on maximizing AI’s beneficial impact while minimizing risks and adverse outcomes.
• Increasing adoption of AI in governance, medicine, education, finance, and defense raises critical ethical issues.

Purpose of IndiaAI’s proposal to call for ethical AI

• To advance the responsible adoption of AI by creating guardrails for ethical use under the Safe & Trusted AI pillar of the IndiaAI Mission.
• To promote transparency, accountability, fairness, and societal awareness in AI applications.

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Importance of AI Ethics

• Ensuring Fairness and Reducing Bias: AI systems can inherit biases from training data, leading to discriminatory practices.
  • A Capgemini survey revealed that 85% of organizations encountered ethical concerns in their AI implementations​.
• Safeguarding Privacy and Data Protection: AI relies on large datasets, raising concerns about misuse of personal information.
  • Recently, ANI sued OpenAI for unauthorized use of copyrighted news articles​.
• Promoting Transparency and Accountability: Transparent AI ensures public trust and helps assign responsibility for decisions.
  • The “black box problem” in deep learning models makes AI decision-making opaque, hindering accountability.
• Preventing Security Risks and Misuse: Adversarial attacks on AI systems can lead to catastrophic outcomes in critical domains.
  • AI-enabled cyberattacks, such as deepfakes, are rising; e.g., the fake video of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy surrendering during the Russia-Ukraine conflict​.
• Fostering Inclusive Growth: Ethical AI ensures benefits reach all sections of society, avoiding digital divides.
  • AI solutions like NIRAMAI (early breast cancer detection) must address inclusivity to ensure adoption in rural areas​.
  • The “AI for All” strategy by India aims to democratize AI benefits across underserved communities​.
• Building Public Trust in AI Systems: Ethical AI usage fosters trust, ensuring widespread adoption and acceptance.
  • Ethical guidelines for facial recognition by Microsoft and Google improved user trust.

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Challenges for India in Ethical Use of AI

• Data Privacy and Protection: India lacks a comprehensive data protection law, making it difficult to regulate how AI systems collect and use data.
  • The absence of strong privacy laws like the EU’s GDPR raises concerns about misuse of personal data by AI applications.
• Bias and Discrimination in AI Models: Training datasets often reflect social, cultural, and systemic biases, leading to discriminatory AI decisions.
  • A NITI Aayog report highlights the need for inclusive datasets that reflect India’s linguistic and cultural diversity.
• Digital Divide: Unequal access to AI technologies and infrastructure limits ethical and inclusive AI adoption in rural and underserved areas.
  • AI applications like e-health solutions remain inaccessible to marginalized communities due to lack of internet penetration.
• Dual-Use Nature of Technology: The dual-use nature of AI poses challenges for India, enabling both beneficial applications (e.g., healthcare, security) and harmful misuse (e.g., surveillance, deepfakes), requiring robust regulations, ethical oversight, and public awareness.
• Lack of AI Regulations and Standards: India lacks specific regulations to govern AI development and deployment, leaving ethical concerns unaddressed.
  • The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) recently initiated work on AI standards, but progress is slow.
• AI Governance: India lacks a centralized regulatory framework to govern the ethical use of AI across sectors. Overlapping responsibilities between MeitY, NITI Aayog, and other bodies create ambiguities in AI governance.
  • A dedicated AI ethics and governance body, similar to Singapore’s Model AI Governance Framework, has not yet been established in India.
• Job Displacement and Economic Inequality: Rapid automation through AI could lead to large-scale unemployment, especially in sectors like manufacturing and services.
  • AI-powered chatbots and automation in customer service roles threaten millions of jobs in India’s BPO sector.
  • It is estimated that 800 million jobs could be displaced globally by automation by 2030 (McKinsey Global Institute).
• Lack of Skilled Workforce: India faces a shortage of skilled professionals trained in AI ethics, governance, and technical domains.
  • Ethical AI design requires cross-disciplinary expertise in technology, law, and social sciences, which is currently lacking.
  • NASSCOM reported in 2021 that India needs 2 million AI professionals, but the current talent pool is much smaller.
• Use of AI in Surveillance: AI-powered surveillance systems risk violating privacy and civil liberties if misused.
  • The deployment of facial recognition systems in public spaces has raised concerns about mass surveillance without adequate oversight.
  • A 2021 report by Freedom House classified India as “partly free” in terms of digital rights, highlighting risks of AI misuse.
• International Human Rights Matters: The use of AI in areas like surveillance, predictive policing, and border control risks violating international human rights standards.
  • India is a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, requiring adherence to principles that protect individual freedoms and rights.
• Cross-Border Data Flow and Sovereignty: Dependence on foreign AI technologies and data storage raises issues of data sovereignty and security.
  • India banned TikTok in 2020 over data sovereignty and security concerns, alleging unauthorized access to Indian user data by its China-based parent company, ByteDance.
• Public Awareness and Trust: Limited public understanding of AI ethics reduces trust and adoption.
  • Misuse of deepfakes and AI-generated misinformation has increased skepticism about AI technologies.
  • A Pew Research Center survey found that 60% of Indians are concerned about AI replacing jobs and privacy violations.

Indian Initiatives Promoting Ethical AI

• NITI Aayog’s National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence (NSAI)
  • Focuses on leveraging AI for social and economic benefits while emphasizing ethical principles such as privacy, transparency, and accountability.
  • Introduced the concept of “Responsible AI for All” to ensure inclusive and equitable AI development in sectors like healthcare, agriculture, and education.
• Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)
  • Established a committee for setting standards in AI, focusing on ethics, privacy, safety, and interoperability.
  • Collaborates with international organizations like ISO to align Indian standards with global best practices.
• Personal Data Protection Act 2023
  • Aims to regulate the use of personal data by AI systems, ensuring data privacy and security.
  • Proposes data localization and stringent penalties for misuse of personal information.
• Digital India Programme
  • Focuses on digital empowerment and AI adoption while promoting ethical considerations like accessibility and inclusivity.
  • Encourages the development of AI solutions tailored for underserved regions and diverse linguistic groups.
• AI Pe Charcha (AI Dialogue)
  • It is a series of panel discussions on artificial intelligence (AI) organized by the National eGovernance Division (NeGD) of the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY).
  • The AI Pe Charcha series was launched as part of India’s first global AI summit, Responsible AI for Social Empowerment (RAISE) in 2020.
• Responsible AI for Youth Programme
  • Launched by the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) to inculcate awareness of AI ethics among school students in 2022.
  • Focuses on educating the next generation about ethical implications of AI, such as privacy and fairness.
• National AI Portal (IndiaAI)
  • A government initiative to promote AI awareness and provide updates on ethical AI practices in India.
  • Acts as a hub for information on India’s AI policies, projects, and ethical standards.
• G20 New Delhi declaration: 
  • Use of AI as a tool for solving challenges, achieving Sustainable Development Goals and achieving overall public good.
  • Attributes of the AI system as responsible, safe, inclusive and human-centric
  • Responsible AI to be ensured through transparency, accountability, explainability and respect for human rights including privacy.
  • Adoption of a pro-innovation approach that encourages equitable sharing of benefits while mitigating risks.

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Global Initiatives Promoting Ethical AI

• OECD Principles on Artificial Intelligence
  • The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) established principles for trustworthy AI.
  • Emphasizes human-centered values, transparency, accountability, and robustness.
  • Endorsed by 46 countries, these principles guide governments in creating ethical AI policies.
• UNESCO’s Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence
  • A global framework adopted by UNESCO in 2021 to ensure ethical AI use.
  • Focuses on inclusion, sustainability, privacy, and data protection.
• European Union (EU) Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI
  • Developed by the EU’s High-Level Expert Group on AI to ensure responsible AI deployment.
  • Includes seven principles: accountability, fairness, transparency, safety, privacy, inclusivity, and societal well-being.
• Montreal Declaration for Responsible AI
  • An initiative from Canada emphasizing AI’s ethical use in society.
  • Focuses on equity, fairness, respect for autonomy, and protecting the environment.
• GPAI (Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence)
  • A collaborative effort by 29 countries, including India, to advance ethical and inclusive AI.
  • Focuses on bias reduction, data governance, and ensuring AI benefits are shared equitably.
• IEEE Global Initiative on Ethics of Autonomous and Intelligent Systems
  • Develops standards for ethical AI use, focusing on transparency, accountability, and human rights.
  • Standards like IEEE P7000 outline processes for ethically aligning AI technologies.

Way Forward for Ethical AI in India

• Establish a Comprehensive Legal Framework: Implement robust laws for data protection, AI governance, and ethical standards.
  • A law similar to the EU’s GDPR can regulate data usage by AI systems.
• Promote Indigenous AI Research and Development: Invest in AI research tailored to India’s diverse needs and values.
  • Encourage collaborations between government, academia, and industry to create inclusive and culturally sensitive AI solutions.
• Develop Ethical AI Standards: Establish AI standards through the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) for fairness, transparency, and accountability.
  • Standards aligned with international frameworks like OECD principles can ensure ethical global collaboration.
• Bridge the Digital Divide: Ensure equitable access to AI technologies across rural and underserved areas.
  • Strengthen infrastructure like internet connectivity and AI literacy programs to reduce disparities in AI adoption.
• Build Awareness and Ethical Capacity: Conduct public awareness campaigns and introduce AI ethics as part of educational curricula.
  • Train stakeholders, including policymakers, developers, and the public, on ethical AI practices.
• Establish a Regulatory Body for AI Oversight: Create an independent regulatory authority to oversee AI deployments and enforce ethical practices.
  • This body should monitor AI systems for compliance, assess risks, and address grievances.

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Conclusion

AI offers incredible potential for progress and problem-solving, but without strong ethical guidelines, it risks causing serious harm. Therefore, as AI development and deployment advance, adhering to ethical AI principles is crucial to ensure this technology benefits all of humanity.

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