As such, algorithms are being given responsibility for making decisions that impact our lives more than ever before. But it is becoming increasingly clear this is not always being done fairly or transparently. In some cases, it is actually being used to do harm and influence behaviours in morally dubious ways.

From Google’s secret work with the US government on its military AI drone initiative and Facebook’s ad-serving algorithm discriminating by race and gender; to Amazon’s internal recruiting tool disadvantaging female candidates and its allegedly biased facial recognition tech; to Instagram resetting its algorithms after exposing children to harmful content – numerous high-profile stories have brought conversations around the ethics of AI to the fore in the last year.

For the first time, Google and Microsoft have acknowledged in investor statements that “flawed” algorithms could result in “brand or reputational harm” and have an “adverse affect” on financial performance. These companies have been using AI for years; that they are only flagging it as a problem now shows just how much the issue has escalated.

So as brands in all sectors increasingly rely on AI to predict and understand the behaviour of their customers, as well as improve their marketing and customer experience, what does best practice AI look like, how can it be achieved and what role does marketing play?

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.marketingweek.com