Ai and fundamental rights - why it is relevant for policymaking

• Author: European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (EU body or agency)
• Pages: 15-24

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AI AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS  WHY

IT IS RELEVANT FOR POLICYMAKING

Artif‌icial intelligence(AI) is increasingly used in the private and public sectors,

affecting daily life. Some see AI as the end of human control over machines.

Others view it as the technology that will help humanity address some of its

most pressing challenges. While neither portrayal may be accurate, concerns

about AI’s fundamental rights impact are clearly mounting, meriting scrutiny

of its use by human rights actors.

Examples of potential problems with using AI-related technologies in relation

to fundamental rights have increasingly emerged. These include:

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an algorithm used to recruit human resources was found to generally

prefer men over women;1

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an online chatbot2 became ‘racist’ within a couple of hours;3

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machine translations showed gender bias;4

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facial recognition systems detect gender well for white men, but not for

black women;5

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a public administration’s use of algorithms to categorise unemployed

people did not comply with the law;6

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and a court stopped an algorithmic system supporting social benef‌it

decisions for breaching data protection laws.7

These examples raise profound questions about whether modern AI systems

are f‌it for purpose and how fundamental rights standards can be upheld

when using or considering using AI systems.

This report addresses these questions by providing a snapshot of the current

use of AI-related technologies in the EU – based on selected use cases – and

its implications on fundamental rights.