Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ AI & Global Governance: Human Rights and AI Ethics – Why Ethics Cannot be Replaced by the UDHR

Stephen Downes

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According to this post, "In the increasingly popular quest of trying to make the tech world ethical, a new idea has emerged: just replace 'ethics' with 'human rights'." As an example, the author cites a "blog post and the report that it is based on from Harvard Law School: Artificial Intelligence & Human Rights: Opportunities & Risks wherein it is argued "human rights is the light that we need to follow to get out on the 'right' side." So why isn't this enough? "This argument is based on an overestimation of what the UDHR is capable of, and an underestimation of what ethics is and does." An action isn't wrong only if it violates human rights. It can be wrong for other reasons too. For example, we don't have a right to be told the truth - but it is still ethically wrong to lie to people. Moreover, "when there is conflict between different human rights, we would have to turn to principles of moral and political philosophy to reason further."

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
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Last Updated: Apr 18, 2024 8:51 p.m.

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