Today, Partnership on AI (PAI), a global nonprofit partnership of industry, civil society, and academic organizations, launched its new Guidance for Inclusive AI: Practicing Participatory Engagement providing tech developers and deployers with a framework for ethically engaging with the public, particularly socially marginalized groups.
User research has long been a part of the technology development process, but AI’s capabilities require that developers and deployers take a more intentional approach to engaging members of the public. PAI’s Guidance for Inclusive AI was developed to provide technologists with a comprehensive resource on how to conduct public engagement well, centering the needs of people.
“As more and more AI products permeate the daily lives of people around the globe, product developers need to consider their customers’ needs as well as other communities that may be impacted by this general purpose technology,” said Rebecca Finlay, CEO, Partnership on AI. “Developed over two years through extensive consultations with experts across our partner community and beyond, PAI’s Guidance for Inclusive AI lays out a new standard for tech development, and a valuable resource for anyone building or deploying AI.”
The Guidance was created in consultation with PAI’s Global Task Force for Inclusive AI, a group whose members bring decades of experience in technology development, community engagement and advocacy, and community-based research. Building on their expertise and insights from across disciplines and domains, the Guidance establishes a different standard for public engagement in the AI sector: Meaningful public engagement that focuses on broadening developers’ understanding of the historical and social contexts in which their technology will operate to ensure AI products are designed for the full spectrum of people who will interact with them in their daily lives.
“Participatory public engagement isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to responsible AI,” said Tina M. Park, PhD, Head of Inclusive Research and Design, Partnership on AI. “Building trust among users and communities affected by AI is a necessary investment to complement technical development work. The Guidance for Inclusive AI presents a framework that can benefit all AI developing and deploying organizations.”
The Guidance for Inclusive AI: Practicing Participatory Engagement is now available on the PAI website, includes a first-of-its-kind interactive module to provide custom guidance that product developers can implement immediately. To learn more about the Guidance, participatory public engagement, and the Global Task Force for Inclusive AI, we invite you to join a webinar on Tuesday, May 20.
