AI Accountability Lab at Trinity College
A new research group focused on promoting accountability in artificial intelligence (AI) has recently been launched at Trinity College Dublin. The initiative, named the AI Accountability Lab, aims to thoroughly investigate the broader societal impacts of AI technologies and ensure that influential organizations are held accountable for any technological harms inflicted upon communities.
The establishment of the lab comes as concerns grow regarding how AI technologies can perpetuate and even exacerbate existing societal inequalities, particularly affecting vulnerable groups. Researchers stress that the indiscriminate deployment of AI in critical sectors such as healthcare, education, and law enforcement can lead to negative consequences for individuals and communities. This emphasizes the need for comprehensive evaluations before integrating AI solutions into these essential areas.
Leading the lab is Dr. Abeba Birhane, a Research Fellow at the ADAPT Research Ireland Centre, located within the School of Computer Science and Statistics at Trinity. Dr. Birhane emphasizes the lab’s mission to enhance transparency and accountability in AI development and utilization. She notes that this will involve a deeper understanding and critical assessment of the surrounding AI ecosystem, focusing on factors such as potential corporate capture and the evaluation of specific AI models, tools, and training datasets.
The AI Accountability Lab is backed by a generous grant of nearly €1.5 million, provided by three key organizations: the AI Collaborative, an initiative of the Omidyar Group; Luminate; and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The lab will be situated within Trinity College’s School of Computer Science and Statistics, creating a dedicated environment for rigorous AI research.
Professor Gregory O’Hare, the Head of the School of Computer Science and Statistics, highlights the urgency of this initiative, stating, “The new dawn of AI associated with generative AI has heralded a velocity of AI adoption hitherto fore not witnessed.” He believes that the AI Accountability Lab will be at the forefront of research in this area, working towards algorithmic auditability and establishing itself as a National and European Centre of Excellence dedicated to promoting best practices in AI research.