AI Ethics: A Textbook (Artificial Intelligence: Foundations, Theory, and Algorithms)

This book introduces readers to critical ethical concerns in the development and use of artificial intelligence. Offering clear and accessible information on central concepts and debates in AI ethics, it explores how related problems are now forcing us to address fundamental, age-old questions about human life, value, and meaning. In addition, the book shows how foundational and theoretical issues relate to concrete controversies, with an emphasis on understanding how ethical questions play out in practice.

All topics are explored in depth, with clear explanations of relevant debates in ethics and philosophy, drawing on both historical and current sources. Questions in AI ethics are explored in the context of related issues in technology, regulation, society, religion, and culture, to help readers gain a nuanced understanding of the scope of AI ethics within broader debates and concerns.

Written with both students and educators in mind, the book is easy to use, with keyterms clearly explained, and numerous exercises designed to stretch and challenge. It offers readers essential insights into the evolving field of AI ethics. Moreover, it presents a range of methods and strategies that can be used to analyse and understand ethical questions, which are illustrated throughout with case studies.

Paula Boddington is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Healthcare at the University of West London where she works with a research group concerned with the quality of care for hospital patients who are also living with dementia. She has held academic posts at the Australian National University, Bristol University, Cardiff University, and Oxford University, and has degrees in philosophy, psychology, and law from Keele, Oxford, and Cardiff Universities. She has a long-standing interest in ethical and social questions in new technologies, including artificial intelligence. She is the author of Towards a Code of Ethics for Artificial Intelligence (Springer, 2017) and Ethical Challenges in Genomics Research (Springer, 2012).