Artificial intelligence (AI) seems like it’s going to be the next frontier in technological development. In a few short years, we’ve gone from imagining AI as some far-off, distant possibility to something that is integrated into most moments in our daily lives.
Already, you’ve probably used AI for both personal and professional tasks, at least to some extent. In the future, you’ll likely use it even more. But if you want to get the most out of AI and minimize potential consequences, it’s important for you to use AI strategically and responsibly.
AI Is Amazing – But It’s Not Perfect
AI can be useful for a wide range of responsibilities and functions, from predictive analytics to workflow automation. However, it’s not a perfect solution for everything. Many AI platforms suffer from specific limitations, often because of a lack of available training data, blind spots from engineers, processing complications, and a combination of other factors.
AI platforms built for research don’t always provide accurate information, AI platforms built for analysis don’t always offer perfect conclusions, and of course, AI platforms tend to struggle with tasks they weren’t designed for.
On top of that, using AI irresponsibly can be a net negative for your business or you as an individual. It could render your information vulnerable, lead you to incorrect conclusions, or produce bad decisions.
How to Use AI Responsibly
So what measures can you enact to use AI more responsibly?
- Choose the right tools. First, make sure you choose the right tools. These days, there are thousands of interesting AI tools on the market, and there will likely be even more in the years to come. Not all of these platforms are equally powerful, and not all of them are equally reliable. It’s your responsibility to choose the right tools for your organization and your needs, so you can get access to the highest-quality products and limit your risk exposure.
- Do your due diligence. Next, do your due diligence. Hopefully, you’ve already researched the tools available to you, but it’s important to go a step further and thoroughly understand whichever tools you’re using presently. How do these developers handle private information? What are the acknowledged strengths and weaknesses of this platform? Are there any issues inherent with this platform that you’ll need to understand and compensate for?
- Protect sensitive information. Even the most secure and robust AI platforms can be the victims of data breaches. Accordingly, you should always take extra precautions to protect sensitive information. In most scenarios, you should outright avoid feeding AI with sensitive personal details like contact information or Social Security numbers. Always assume that your AI platform is less secure than it seems.
- Test the limits. You can also become better acquainted with the limitations and weaknesses of an AI platform by testing it. Before using any AI platform for something important, you should put it through the ringer with carefully designed queries and tests to evaluate its performance. The more experience you get with a platform, the more confident you’ll be able to feel about what it can do for your organization.
- Avoid when appropriate. Sometimes, the best course of action is to avoid using AI altogether. You should work to understand the best and worst applications for AI, so you can use these types of tools strategically.
- Disclose your use. In most scenarios, it pays to openly disclose your use of AI. Instead of trying to hide it or passing off the AI work as your own, simply let your clients, employers, partners, and peers know that you’re using it. It’s a best practice not only for honesty but also work quality, and it can save you a lot of embarrassment if there are problems associated with the work.
- Practice prompt engineering. Prompt engineering is the practice of deliberately drafting and tweaking prompts for conversational AI engines to achieve optimal output. This is a skill like any other, which you can develop through reading, learning, and practice. The better you become as a prompt engineer, the better your results are going to be.
- Check the output. You should always check the output of your AI engine before using it for any purpose. Never assume that AI output is factually correct or appropriate for your application; always double-check and verify these things for yourself.
- Consider establishing guidelines. If you plan on using AI within an organization, consider establishing formal guidelines for how it should be used. This way, everyone in your organization can adhere to the same rules, and you can update those rules globally whenever it becomes necessary.
It’s imperative for you to use AI responsibly if you want to minimize the potential downsides and consequences while maximizing the value of this technology. Fortunately, with these careful strategies, you’ll be in a much better position to do it.