Two new bodies dedicated to investigate the potential benefits and governance of data and artificial intelligence (AI) have, in the past month, announced the next stages of their development.
prospectus (PDF) and announced four board members, including RSS executive director, Hetan Shah. The new independent research body was set up earlier this year to ensure that data and AI works for people and society. It was founded by the Nuffield Foundation, aided by other organisations including the RSS, the Alan Turing Institute, the British Academy and the Wellcome Trust.
This announcement came shortly after the government announced the board and remit for its new Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation (CDEI), an advisory body set up to investigate and advise on how to maximise the benefits of data-enabled technologies, including AI. The CDEI board includes Professor Luciano Floridi and Adrian Weller, respectively Data Ethics Group chair and AI programme director at the Alan Turing Institute.
As well as Hetan Shah, the inaugural members on the Ada Lovelace Institute’s board include Professor Helen Margetts, director of Oxford University’s The Engine Room. Additional board members will be appointed in 2019 to ensure representation from different sectors and disciplines.
Hetan Shah commented: ‘I'm delighted to join the Board of the Ada Lovelace Institute. It is an important initiative to ensure data and artificial intelligence are used for public good. The Institute has its roots in the call from the RSS in 2015 for the creation of a new Council for Data Ethics.’