AI Ethics, Governance, and Safety

This unit examines ethical, legal, and societal implications of AI systems, emphasizing bias, safety, privacy, accountability, governance, and economic and social impact. Students learn team roles and communication strategies for setting realistic expectations and apply frameworks to balance innovation with regulation as they prepare for applied project work in the final unit.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze case studies to identify sources, mechanisms, and consequences of algorithmic bias and social discrimination in AI systems.
• Evaluate and compare technical and organizational strategies for safety, security, data protection, and privacy, recommending mitigations based on risk assessment.
• Apply accountability and transparency frameworks to design governance structures, define roles within AI teams, and produce stakeholder communication plans that set expectations about AI capabilities and limitations.
• Demonstrate the ability to assess economic and social impacts of AI deployments and propose balanced policy or design recommendations that weigh innovation against regulation.