Responsible and Sustainable Use of AI: Human Dignity in Business Strategy

The purpose of this chapter is to suggest how ‘human dignity’ can provide a valuable framework for starting conversations about the responsible and sustainable use of artificial intelligence (AI) in business and beyond. Benefits are prominent in business plans and marketing, and because negative impacts tend to be more subtle, the ‘availability heuristic’ entails that negative consequences can be easily overlooked. AI has been at the core of data-driven business models, particularly in personalised marketing, long before the advent of generative AI. Based on this experience, this chapter provides a framework for understanding the negative impacts of AI use by discussing personal, social and societal consequences—against which the benefits must be weighed. The discussion is informed by the legal concept of human dignity, which includes the rights to freedom, privacy, property and non-discrimination. The overarching aim is to ensure that unintended negative consequences of the use of AI become less unexpected, so that risks to humanity can be avoided or mitigated. The chapter suggests how businesses themselves can be part of the solution, and also become vulnerable targets of commercial practices normally used to persuade and manipulate consumers.