ABOUT THE SYMPOSIUM

AIRoNoS 2019, the AI and Robotics Normative Spheres Symposium, which is part of the AISB 2019 Convention: Artificial Intelligence, Imagination and Invention, aims to explore the various ethical and regulatory challenges and opportunities that developments in artificial intelligence and robotics announce. The Symposium proposes to both explore the fine-grained implications of certain present-day technological developments and to encourage a debate about a systematic approach to creating an appropriate normative environment for the technology and society of the future. More than ever, imagination and invention in science and technology have to be met with normative imagination and vision, towards a sustainable future.

In the past decades, an increasing number of human intellectual activities, such as perception, recognition, decision-making, inference have been replicated through Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies. AI actions, based on these intellectual processes, have led to such technologies being used in a multitude of support activities in businesses and services throughout the economy and society. Big data and machine learning have also led to increased progress in machines offering ‘cognitive insight’, classifying information, identifying patterns, processing of natural language, to mention just a few. Moreover, intelligent machines share now physically, more and more, the same space that humans occupy, with automated vehicles, care robots, surgical robots, hotel receptionists becoming a common encounter.

While the support that such AI and robotics technologies can bring to human activities is expanding at an ever-increasing rate, the normative – ethical and regulatory - environment needed for welcoming such technologies is evolving at a much slower pace and, with few exceptions, mostly in a reactive rather than a proactive manner.

The Symposium proposes a focus on a much-needed debate for a systematic approach to the normative dimensions – ethical and regulatory – and R&D parameters, required for supporting socially-mindful AI and robotics technologies. It sets out to create a platform of debate, as a regular feature of the AISB Convention, inviting AI and robotics scientists as well as social scientists to engage critically within a multi-disciplinary environment.

TOPICS OF INTEREST

The Symposium organisers invite submissions on all aspects of the ethical and/or regulatory issues encountered within or outside AI and robotics labs, on issues including but not limited to:

• ethical codes and guidelines in AI R&D environments;
• signals of the emergence of a new sense of ethics at the human/machine interface;
• relevant dimensions in considering the balance between human decisions and AI-based decisions;
• technologies for cyber security and privacy protection;
• ethical, legal and social (ELS) implications of autonomous robots;
• challenges derived from the AI enhancing of human senses and abilities;
• the challenges of re-distributing responsibility for accidents involving physical or digital AIs;
• ELS implications related to developing and using lethal autonomous weapons (LAW)
• access and exploitation of big data in relation to privacy and/or social justice;
• rights and incentives in developing socially-mindful AIs;
• from moral, to legal, to electronic personhood: ethical, legal and conceptual challenges;
• types of responsibility at the human/machine interface;
• machine ethics and law-abiding algorithms;
• transparency – the white box/black box conundrum – normative implications;
• ethical dimensions of stakeholder consultation in AI and robotics;
• creating a social space for discussing alternative visions of the society–technology dynamics;
• governance and regulation of new technologies – who does the shaping, owning, benefiting from it, accessing it and making decisions about it;
• reflecting on the impact of AI technologies on society – where should we start? A top-down or bottom-up approach?

SYMPOSIUM CHAIR

Dr Aurora Voiculescu, University of Westminster, a.voiculescu@westminster.ac.uk

ORGANISING COMMITTEE

Dr Allison Gardner, School of Computing and Math, Keele University

Prof. Norihiro Hagita, Director, Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Kyoto

Prof. David Gunkel, Northern Illinois University, USA

Dr. Jack Stilgoe, Science and Technology Studies, University College London

Dr Aurora Voiculescu, University of Westminster

Prof. Alan Winfield, Bristol Robotics Laboratory; Bristol University

SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE

Prof. Joanna Bryson, Department of Computer Science, University of Bath

Prof. Susumu Hirano, Director, Preparatory Office for the Faculty of Global Informatics; Chuo University, Tokyo

Prof. Tony Prescot, Sheffield Robotics / University of SheffieldProf. David Gunkel, Northern Illinois University, USA

Prof. Norihiro Hagita, Director, Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International, Kyoto

Dr. Jack Stilgoe, Science and Technology Studies, University College London

Prof. Alan Winfield, Bristol Robotics Laboratory; Bristol University

(Additional members of the committee TBA).

INVITED SPEAKERS

TBA

FORMAT

The Symposium will run over one day (tbc) during which the authors will present their paper. A poster session can also be held, usually over coffee time.

The Symposium will open with a 50-minutes keynote, followed by long (20 min talk, 5 min questions) and short (15 min talk, 5 min questions) talks. Where available, links to the papers will be provided in advance.

Participants registered for the AIRoNoS 2019 Symposium are welcome to attend all three days of the AISB 2019 Convention. 

SUBMISSION GUIDLINES

• Extended Abstracts (up to 2 pages)
• Short papers (4-6 pages)
• Extended papers (6-8 pages)
• Posters (one slide, and one page for the proceedings)

Page count excludes references.

Please use the AISB template:  http://aisb2019.falmouthgamesacademy.com/programme/submissions/

Full papers to be sent as camera-ready version after the notification of acceptance (TBA).

PUBLICATIONS

Participants in the Symposium will be invited to submit extended and reviewed contributions to Connection Science journal and to AI & Society journal  for Special Issue publications to be out in the summer/autumn of 2019. 

KEY DATES:

Submission of papers/abstracts:         18 February 2019

Notification of acceptance:                  08 March 2019

Camera-ready submission:                 25 March 2019

TRAVEL SUPPORT

The AISB 2019 Convention, of which this Symposium is part, is supported by EC FP7 grant 621403.  Some travel support may be provided to eligible participants subject to availability.

CONTACT

For all questions related to the Symposium and paper submissions, please email the Symposium Chair at a.voiculescu@westminster.ac.uk