SHAPING THE FUTURE: THE ROLE AND IMPACT OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN SOCIETY

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly becoming one of the most impactful technologies on the global scale today. The emerging capability of its various algorithms across different fields, such as healthcare, education, and the economy, presents extraordinary opportunities along with social challenges disconnected from risks and issues. This chapter aims to analyze AI by equally exposing its positive aspects and related benefits, such as innovative diagnostics, personalized education, and improved economic productivity, and negative aspects, such as data privacy, algorithm discrimination, job automation, and digital divide. These aspects are subject to the impact of such factors as effective communication, public perception, ethical challenges, and regulation. In addition, AI presents risks of reinforcing existing divides in society, but its effectiveness in helping attain the sustainable development goals, such as combating climate change or providing equal access to health resources in developing countries, denotes its importance. This importance is reinforced by the fact that AI has a much lower carbon footprint, compared to other technologies. Therefore, this chapter pursues the goal of analyzing AI in the context of its impact on future trends and societal values. This goal evolves into the need to establish policies and practices that will help control the negative impact of AI and direct its strengths in the right direction for a better future.