&Audi – An initiative thinking beyond

In his short film “It has to be lived once and dreamed twice,” which was nominated for the Berlinale Shorts, video artist Rainer Kohlberger gives us the first proof that it might be possible. Because: AI created the images in his science fiction film. The script, however, was still created by Kohlberger himself. Torsten Schön, data scientist at Audi, is sure that an AI film script will soon be reality: “An algorithm can read millions of script samples and learn from them.”

So AI can do it, but should it? The members of the discussion panel have differing opinions. But the initiative &Audi’s guiding principle might give us one possible answer: the technological possibilities should be used responsibly.

At the “Towards a Good AI Society Summit” in the European parliament in Brussels, the forum presented a 20-point plan for a responsible AI society. The focus was on the coordination of European AI research and the need to increase awareness of questions surrounding responsible use of new technologies in the minds of developers, lawmakers, and the public.

Audi used the summit to connect with experts from various industries. The more consistent the interdisciplinary discourse on the topic of AI, the more effectively AI can be used to benefit society. The participants from the fields of science, economics, and politics all agreed: AI must be used to benefit people.

The topics ranged from new paths for education and professional development, to financial security, to the question of who is responsible for the actions of AI entities. There were a wide range of responses: more programming courses, a TÜV certification for ethics, and a European model for the working world of the future.

The innovative young thinkers have a concrete image of their working life in the year 2035 and the role that AI will play in it: AI should take over administrative tasks and monotonous work, giving human employees more room for creativity. It’s very much in line with the credo of the initiative &Audi: “AI should make our lives more human — but whether that happens is in our own hands.”

Self-driving cars have the potential to make it safer to drive on our streets. At the same time, public opinion reacts very strongly when automated cars are involved in accidents. “We need to win people over to artificial intelligence emotionally and rationally,” says Miklos Kiss, who works in pre-development of automated driving at Audi. And that means that we, as a society, need to be educated.

That’s where the initiative &Audi comes in. Its approach is to tackle the obstacles on the road to autonomous driving together with stakeholders from throughout our society. The goal is to create reasonable expectations in society as to the possibilities and limitations of technology — which will create trust.

The participants considered the most difficult hurdle to be general acceptance in society: “People will have a much stronger emotional reaction when an accident is caused by a machine rather than a human,” says Kate Darling from the MIT Media Lab. The much-discussed “dilemma situation” has a hold on people.

The initiative &Audi has made it its goal to position the dilemma debate within the overall context of the changes and challenges brought about by autonomous driving. To make that happen, an interdisciplinary dialogue between different areas of our society will be absolutely essential. And so the initiative &Audi will continue to push for this network, to that technology can be implemented in the best interest of individuals and of society.