Technologies inevitably embody the values of their creators, whether a small team of engineers or a large group of nations imagining a collective destiny
The World Economic Forum says when technology is on the agenda, beneficial outcomes should be foremost.
The focus needs to be not only on what technologies are being made but how they are being made, the paper argues. What are the underlying ethics and values?
THEMES
- ‘Wait–and-see‘ is futile.
- Unimagined and unintended consequences will happen.
- Diversity in thinking is essential.
- New disciplines and interdisciplinary methods are needed.
NOTABLE SECTIONS
- New tools – a six-step process to convert aspirations to outcomes
- New skills – areas where individual strengths need to shift
- New partnerships – collaborations that previously might have been unlikely can create valuable new insights
- New institutions – either radical transformation of existing institutions or forming new ones that are more purpose-built for circumstance ahead
AUTHORS
- Thomas Philbeck – Head of Technology, Society and Policy, World Economic Forum
- Nicholas Davis – Head of Society and Innovation, Member of the Executive Committee, World Economic Forum
- Anne Marie Engtoft Larsen – Knowledge Lead, Fourth Industrial Revolution, World Economic Forum
Values, Ethics and Innovation: Rethinking Technological Development in the Fourth Industrial Revolution
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM | August 2018