Error 404: looking for trust in international law on digital technologies. Issue 1 (2nd January 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Rochel, Johan
• Is Part Of: Law, innovation and technology. Volume 15:Issue 1(2023)
• Page Start: 148
• Page End: 184
• Publication Date: 2023-01-02
• Subjects: Trust -- trustworthiness -- digital technologies -- AI -- international law; Technological innovations -- Law and legislation -- Periodicals; Intellectual property -- Periodicals; 338.064
• DOI: 10.1080/17579961.2023.2184139
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1757-997X

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Despite their importance in the ethics of digital technologies, trust and trustworthiness do not appear in the international law on digital technologies. This surprising absence is the point of departure of this paper. On the basis of a survey of philosophical and empirical scholarship on trust in the context of digital technologies (especially AI), the article proceeds by identifying relevant norms in international law which can be considered to operationalise relevant dimensions of trust and trustworthiness. By clustering these norms, a technical conception of trust appears, focused on securing the trustworthiness of an AI system. This conception is based on the framing of an AI system as an agent and on the premise that the role of the law is to promote the uptake of technologies. This technical conception of trust should be enriched by way of three relevant extensions, each addressing in turn: the responsibility of developers, the power relations between users and developers of AI systems, and the benefits associated with the use of AI systems. This extended conception of trust also extends the realm of relevant legal norms that can be used to address AI-powered actions.