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The UK’s first Master’s degree in the responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI) is being launched by the University of Cambridge by Communications team.
Motherboard
Photo: Michael Dziedzic
Artificial Intelligence is already a part of our everyday lives in forms like Alexa, Amazon’s virtual assistant, facial identification, and Google maps. Thinking machines have huge potential to greatly enhance life for billions of people, but the technology also has huge potential downsides.
It can embed sexism, as when an algorithm for ranking job applicants automatically downgraded women; or be used for intrusive surveillance using facial recognition algorithms that decide who is a ‘potential criminal’.
The new degree in AI Ethics aims to teach professionals in all areas of life — from engineers and policymakers to health administrators and HR managers — how to use AI for good, not ill.
The programme is led by the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence (CFI), an interdisciplinary research centre based at the University of Cambridge. Over the past four years, it has established itself at the forefront of AI ethics research worldwide, working in partnership with the University of Oxford, Imperial College London, and UC Berkeley.
CFI is partnering with the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Continuing Education, which provides flexible and accessible higher education courses for adults, to deliver the 2-year part-time Master’s degree...
Dedicated to meeting the practical needs of professionals, the course will address concrete questions such as:
· How can I tell if an AI product is trustworthy?
· How can I anticipate and mitigate possible negative impacts of a technology?
· How can I design a process of responsible innovation for my business?
· How do I safeguard against algorithmic bias?
· How do I keep data private, secure, and properly managed?
· How can I involve diverse stakeholders in AI decision-making?
The hybrid programme will consist of online classes, and intensive week-long residentials at a University of Cambridge college.
Source: University of Cambridge
