The forum brought together representatives of the technological community, science, education, business, society and the state. This was the first event in Russia where developers and users of AI technologies discussed steps to effective implementation the ethics of artificial intelligence in priority industries. The format of an open dialogue between the participants made it possible to determine the prospects for effective interaction for the next few years.
The forum was attended by Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Chernyshenko, Chief of the Presidential Directorate for the Development of Information and Communication Technology and Communication Infrastructure Tatyana Matveeva, General Director of Yandex in Russia Elena Bunina, President of MTS Vyacheslav Nikolaev, director Fyodor Bondarchuk, President of InfoWatch Natalya Kasperskaya. The Center was represented by Andrey Ignatiev, Anna Abramova and Andrey Kuleshov.
Andrey Ignatiev made a presentation in the section “AI Ethics in State” on the topic “Artificial Intelligence: Ethics and Management. From philosophy to concept, engineering and design” and also in the section “Regulation and standardization in the Ethics of AI”, where he talked about the tools to ensure trust in the field of artificial intelligence. Anna Abramova became the moderator of the section “International regulation of AI Ethics”, where experts shared their views on the legislation being developed in the world related to artificial intelligence, and talked about the ongoing initiatives.
The most significant event of the forum was the signing of the first Russian Code of ethics for artificial intelligence, developed by the Alliance in the field of artificial intelligence, taking into account the requirements of the National Strategy for the Development of AI for the period up to 2030. Among the signatories are several dozen technology companies and organizations, including Rostelecom, Yandex, Skolkovo, InfoWatch, Sberbank, MTS, VK, Gazprom Neft, RDIF and HSE. The code spelled out the principles of non-discrimination, information security, responsibility for the consequences of the use of artificial intelligence, as well as a human-centered and humanistic approach to the development of artificial intelligence technologies, and much more. Commitment to the code will be a key element of social responsibility for companies that develop and implement such technologies in Russia. According to the plans, the document will become a recommendation for all participants in the artificial intelligence market: government, business, Russian and foreign developers.
Andrey Kuleshov, speaking at the session “AI Ethics in Science”, noted that the Code is part of the infrastructure, which is definitely necessary for the development of the industry. A professional is required to make a decision about an action that will affect many people, since they, due to their lack of competencies, cannot take it. Then the Code comes into play. As an example, he cited Frances Haugen's recent accusations of unethical behavior against Facebook. “She has three main charges: Facebook content decisions are made on the basis of profit, without considering the interests of users; second, Facebook deliberately creates content that engages underage users; third, Facebook deliberately creates addictive behavior among its users. Almost nothing Facebook is accused of is illegal. Nevertheless, society will find ways to recoup the ethical damage this company is doing. The Code provides a tool that obliges companies to communicate with the public that their actions are dictated by the interests of the community itself”. In the end, he added that codes of ethics are being actively discussed at international venues and urged Russian companies to get more involved in these processes.
