Six months after Google first detailed its seven principles for AI, the company is expanding on that effort with additional initiatives that will help it live up to its promise.
In an effort to encourage teams within the company to consider how the AI principles impact their projects, Google has established several initiatives. It launched a training program to help employees address ethical issues that arise in their work. It also launched an AI Ethics Speaker Series and added a technical module on fairness to the Machine Learning Crash Course.
In addition, the company established a formal review structure for assessing new projects, products, and deals. The review structure consists of three core groups:
- An innovation team for handling day-to-day operations and initial assessments
- A group of senior experts to provide technological, functional, and application expertise
- A council of senior executives for handling complex and difficult issues
According to the company, it has already conducted more than 100 reviews, most of which aligned with the AI principles. In some cases, efforts were modified to maximize benefits while minimizing the potential for misuse, and in others, the company decided to hold off on certain functionality while it works through important technology and policy questions.
“The variety and scope of the cases considered so far are helping us build a framework for scaling this process across Google products and technologies. This framework will include the creation of an external advisory group, comprised of experts from a variety of disciplines, to complement the internal governance and processes outlined above. We’re committed to promoting thoughtful consideration of these important issues and appreciate the work of the many teams contributing to the review process, as we continue to refine our approach,” Google wrote in a blog post.
