Can Economics, Psychology students become AI scientist? A govt official's curious thought
When Amazon’s recruiting tool was found to be using data from a period when men dominated the tech industry, it sparked a debate on responsible AI. Echoing this, Abhishek Singh from the Ministry of IT, spoke about how responsible AI can be implemented in the country.
- Oct 12, 2022,
- Updated Oct 12, 2022 2:18 PM IST
In India, the education system is structured in a manner that unless one has studied Maths, Physics, and Chemistry, he or she cannot become an engineer. However, can people from multi-disciplines help the country get better artificial intelligence (AI) scientists? This is a question that was posed by Abhishek Singh, President, and CEO of the National e-Governance Division of the Ministry of Electronics and IT at the launch of the Responsible AI Hub on Tuesday by the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM). The IT and technology body has partnered with industry leaders such as IBM, Fractal Analytics, Tata Consultancy Services, and Deloitte India to develop the resource hub. “I always wonder if a student who is excellent in Physics, Economics, Psychology, or Neurosciences can become a better AI scientist?” he asked while launching the toolkit which will ensure that AI models in the country are free of biases, risks, and ambiguity. Singh also highlighted that AI must be introduced early on in schools and then students should be encouraged to make a call about which direction they would like to go in their professional lives. The debate of responsible AI has been circling within the tech and business industry for sometime now. Remember Amazon’s example? The AI hiring tool which the recruiters were deploying for a long time was found to be using data from a period in which men dominated the tech industry. That’s why Amazon found its algorithm discriminating against female applicants. While they terminated the program soon after it sparked a debate on how AI was becoming a disadvantage for companies. Another example cited in one of Accenture’s reports was how a user’s credit limit reduced drastically from €9,700 to €3,400 because he shopped at locations ‘where the customer base was expected to have a poor credit repayment history.’ “Thanks to financial profiling, the credit card company’s AI dubbed him a liability, despite him being a homeowner and running a successful public relations firm,” the report read. These examples note how artificial intelligence can stand in the way of creating an equitable workforce and can play zero role in eliminating biases concerning caste, race, religion, and more. Debjani Ghosh, President of NASSCOM, said that “trust is the currency of business” and the challenge now is understanding how to ensure that businesses and AI principles work hand-in-hand.
In India, the education system is structured in a manner that unless one has studied Maths, Physics, and Chemistry, he or she cannot become an engineer. However, can people from multi-disciplines help the country get better artificial intelligence (AI) scientists? This is a question that was posed by Abhishek Singh, President, and CEO of the National e-Governance Division of the Ministry of Electronics and IT at the launch of the Responsible AI Hub on Tuesday by the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM). The IT and technology body has partnered with industry leaders such as IBM, Fractal Analytics, Tata Consultancy Services, and Deloitte India to develop the resource hub. “I always wonder if a student who is excellent in Physics, Economics, Psychology, or Neurosciences can become a better AI scientist?” he asked while launching the toolkit which will ensure that AI models in the country are free of biases, risks, and ambiguity. Singh also highlighted that AI must be introduced early on in schools and then students should be encouraged to make a call about which direction they would like to go in their professional lives. The debate of responsible AI has been circling within the tech and business industry for sometime now. Remember Amazon’s example? The AI hiring tool which the recruiters were deploying for a long time was found to be using data from a period in which men dominated the tech industry. That’s why Amazon found its algorithm discriminating against female applicants. While they terminated the program soon after it sparked a debate on how AI was becoming a disadvantage for companies. Another example cited in one of Accenture’s reports was how a user’s credit limit reduced drastically from €9,700 to €3,400 because he shopped at locations ‘where the customer base was expected to have a poor credit repayment history.’ “Thanks to financial profiling, the credit card company’s AI dubbed him a liability, despite him being a homeowner and running a successful public relations firm,” the report read. These examples note how artificial intelligence can stand in the way of creating an equitable workforce and can play zero role in eliminating biases concerning caste, race, religion, and more. Debjani Ghosh, President of NASSCOM, said that “trust is the currency of business” and the challenge now is understanding how to ensure that businesses and AI principles work hand-in-hand.