The London School of Economics and Political Science
Ethics of AI
Examine the ethical dilemmas and potential advantages arising from artificial intelligence as you delve into the topic.
Start date
18 November 2024
Course duration
3 weeks
Language
English
Access resources from start date
Effort
6–8 hours per week
Self-paced learning online
Course overview
“Governments and companies need to make AI fairness a priority, given that algorithms are influencing decisions on everything from employment and lending to healthcare.”
World Economic Forum (Jun, 2023).
The number of survey respondents who aren’t sure whether their organsations have ethical standards guiding AI use.
Deloitte (Oct, 2023).
Duration: 3 weeks
Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionising how we live and work, but it also poses various ethical challenges. From privacy issues to biases in recruiting algorithms, it is crucial to address these challenges to implement AI effectively. The Ethics of AI online course from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a three-week course that explores the societal implications of AI. This course will give you valuable skills to analyse and navigate real-world ethical dilemmas. You'll learn how AI can impact economic resources and productivity, exacerbate or combat discrimination and power imbalances, and transform social interactions. The course features faculty from LSE's Department of Philosophy, Logic, and Scientific Method, who are experts in socially relevant philosophy. Join this high-quality master class experience to enhance your intellectual curiosity and professional skill set.
Is this course for you?
Ethical considerations related to AI, data, and technological advancement are becoming increasingly important for professionals in the public sector, private sector, and civil society. This online course provides practical tools to help leaders deal with these issues and guide their organisations toward responsible innovation. Professionals in the tech industry can also benefit from improving their understanding of ethics and AI for career growth and personal development. Anyone interested in the societal impact of AI will find this course useful. Whether seeking professional development or personal enrichment, participants will gain insights into managing the impact of AI on individuals and society.
Course overview
Introduction
Duration: 3 weeks
Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionising how we live and work, but it also poses various ethical challenges. From privacy issues to biases in recruiting algorithms, it is crucial to address these challenges to implement AI effectively. The Ethics of AI online course from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a three-week course that explores the societal implications of AI. This course will give you valuable skills to analyse and navigate real-world ethical dilemmas. You'll learn how AI can impact economic resources and productivity, exacerbate or combat discrimination and power imbalances, and transform social interactions. The course features faculty from LSE's Department of Philosophy, Logic, and Scientific Method, who are experts in socially relevant philosophy. Join this high-quality master class experience to enhance your intellectual curiosity and professional skill set.
Is this course for you?
Ethical considerations related to AI, data, and technological advancement are becoming increasingly important for professionals in the public sector, private sector, and civil society. This online course provides practical tools to help leaders deal with these issues and guide their organisations toward responsible innovation. Professionals in the tech industry can also benefit from improving their understanding of ethics and AI for career growth and personal development. Anyone interested in the societal impact of AI will find this course useful. Whether seeking professional development or personal enrichment, participants will gain insights into managing the impact of AI on individuals and society.
How is this course different?
What will set you apart
An understanding of the theoretical foundations of democracy and administrations to diagnose challenges and opportunities posed by AI.
The ability to evaluate inequalities of resources, opportunities, and power in the workplace as a result of AI.
An understanding of the roles and obligations of governments and multinational corporations in responsibly designing and deploying AI.
A set of critical thinking skills to debate key ethical issues in AI, delivered entirely online. 
Unlimited access to edX’s Career Engagement Network, offering you exclusive resources and events to support your professional journey and drive your career forward.The curriculum
Module 1: AI and the state: Democracy, legitimacy, and transparency
Explore the foundations of democratic theory and theories of administrative power, and learn how to diagnose challenges and opportunities posed by AI using those foundations.
- Review and contrast two justifications for democracy in terms of their value and validity
- Articulate the challenges that misinformation and targeting pose to politics
- Determine how AI can create opportunities to improve politics
- Understand the concepts of legitimacy and transparency
- Investigate why AI raises issues of legitimacy and transparency
Module 2: AI and business: Algorithmic bias and inequality
Investigate how AI can create inequalities of resources, opportunity, and power in the business world, and how it can perpetuate historic injustice.
- Outline important conceptions of justice and fairness in contemporary ethics
- Discuss the ways in which technological change can impact the distribution of resources and productivity gains
- Determine the policies required to ensure that the development of AI contributes to an inclusive economy
- Investigate how algorithmic bias perpetuates issues of unequal opportunities and discrimination in hiring
- Explore how machine learning raises a risk of discrimination, and possible solutions to address those risks
- Evaluate the acceptability of workplace surveillance through the lens of the value of privacy
- Use explicit ethical principles to build an argument and defend it against objections
Module 3: AI and society: Challenges and opportunities
Understand conceptions of global governance, corporate social responsibility, decision-making under risk, and market failures to investigate issues of global justice raised by AI.
- Outline issues of value alignment in AI and their role in guiding solutions for value-sensitive design of technology
- Illustrate the conflicting moral responsibilities and obligations of firms and government in the global governance of AI
- Investigate the issues that arise from content moderation
- Analyse how businesses developing and using AI systems can exploit market failures, and the difficulties of addressing these failures at the global level
- Investigate how we can promote more ethical AI in business
- Explore different decision rules that can help us balance the risks and benefits of AI
- Understand different global approaches to regulation, and power imbalances between national governments and other stakeholders
Who you'll learn from
Dr Kate Vredenburgh
Course Convenor; Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method, LSE
.svg){kind=icon}
Dr Thomas Ferretti
Course Contributor; Fellow, Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method, LSE
Your skills recognised
Authenticate your skills online with an official digital certificate of competence as well as a digital badge from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
How you'll learn
This online course is broken up into manageable units designed to accelerate your learning process through diverse activities:
.png)
Work through your downloadable and online instructional material
.png)
Interact with your peers and learning facilitators through discussion forums
.png)
Enjoy a wide range of interactive content including videos, podcasts, quizzes, and more
.png)
Develop an essential skill set to apply immediately in your context and career
Apply what you learn throughout this master class experience and develop an analytical set of tools to practice ethical reasoning and manage the diverse impacts of AI.
Your success team
Online education provider GetSmarter offers a personalised approach to online learning that ensures you’re supported every step of the way.
.svg)
Head Tutor
A subject matter expert who’ll guide you through content-related challenges.
.svg)
Global success team
Available 24/7 to solve your tech-related and administrative queries and concerns.
A powerful collaboration
The London School of Economics and Political Science is collaborating with GetSmarter to create a new class of learning experience – one that is high-touch, intimate, and personalised for the working professional.
About LSE
The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a leading dedicated social science university. LSE was founded in 1895 with the aim of understanding the causes of things for the “betterment of society”. LSE seeks to make research and teaching practical and relevant to the real world. The School counts 18 Nobel Prize winners and 37 world leaders amongst its alumni and staff. LSE has students from over 160 countries, and over 100 languages are spoken on campus.
About GetSmarter
GetSmarter, a 2U, Inc. brand, partners with the world's leading universities and institutions to select, design and deliver premium online courses with a data-driven focus on learning gain. Technology meets academic rigour in GetSmarter’s people-mediated model, whose interactive online format allows for self-paced learning and a greater level of participant engagement.
Drive responsible innovation
Examine the ethical challenges and opportunities posed by AI on this three-week online course from LSE.
Want to know more?
Payment options
You can pay online via our secure payment gateway, or make payment via electronic transfer or direct deposit. For transfers, banking details can be found on your invoice once you've completed your registration. Please get in touch with an Enrollment Adviser or contact us for more information.
Seek employer assistance
By improving your skills and industry knowledge, you'll have an influence on the success of your organization. Why wouldn't you ask your boss to help you fund your studies if it's going to have an impact on the way you do business?
Of our past students, 37 percent have received financial assistance from their employers. You can ask for help, too. Here is a guide to show you how to request financial assistance from your employer.
If you are a Learning & Development (L&D) manager, or involved in training and upskilling for an organization, you can request information regarding our corporate offering on our GetSmarter for business page.
Manage your time
GetSmarter's learning model is designed to help you, as a working professional, improve your skills without compromising on work and family responsibilities. The course work is broken up into weekly, manageable bite-sized modules, designed to help you pace yourself over the duration of the course and allow you the legroom to work when it suits you best. You'll be presented with the course content at the beginning of each module so that you can plan your time.
You also have access to the Global success team who will support you with any administrative or technical queries you might have.
Discover the Online Campus
The Online Campus will be your virtual classroom for the duration of your course. Through its easy-to-use interface you'll have access to a diverse variety of course content formats including: interactive videos, module notes, practice quizzes, presentations, and additional web resources.
On the Online Campus, you'll also be able to ask questions and interact with your fellow students and teaching team through the discussion forums. If you are looking for your Online Campus login, please see the list of university partner login pages here.
