@article{134d85c83e2c4758b11cd67592d9ab3f,
title = "What can science fiction tell us about the future of artificial intelligence policy?",
abstract = "This paper addresses the gap between familiar popular narratives describing Artificial Intelligence (AI), such as the trope of the killer robot, and the realistic near-future implications of machine intelligence and automation for technology policy and society. The authors conducted a series of interviews with technologists, science fiction writers, and other experts, as well as a workshop, to identify a set of key themes relevant to the near future of AI. In parallel, they led the analysis of almost 100 recent works of science fiction stories with AI themes to develop a preliminary taxonomy of AI in science fiction. These activities informed the commissioning of six original works of science fiction and non-fiction response essays on the themes of “intelligence” and “justice” that were published as part of the Slate Future Tense Fiction series in 2019 and 2020. Our findings indicate that artificial intelligence remains deeply ambiguous both in the policy and cultural contexts: we struggle to define the boundaries and the agency of machine intelligence, and consequently find it difficult to govern or interact with such systems. However, our findings also suggest more productive avenues of inquiry and framing that could foster both better policy and better narratives around AI.",
keywords = "Artificial intelligence, Futures, Policy futures, Science fiction, Technology policy",
author = "Hudson, {Andrew Dana} and Ed Finn and Ruth Wylie",
note = "Funding Information: The authors would like to thank our many collaborators on this project at ASU, Slate Magazine, and New America. We are particularly grateful for the hard work of our readers, Adam Clark and Samantha Geiser, and our undergraduate researchers, Sakshi Hedge and Michelle Emmanuelli, as well as our colleagues Joey Eschrich, Kevin Bankston, Torie Bosch, Anthony Nguyen, Andr{\'e}s Martinez, the New America events and communications teams, and the Slate editorial team. We are indebted to the excellent feedback and suggestions of our advisory board and the participants in our lively discussions at the Future Tense workshop and public event in May 2019. This research was made possible thanks to funding from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Google. Funding Information: This work was supported by grants from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Google as part of the AI Policy Futures project. Funding Information: The authors would like to thank our many collaborators on this project at ASU, Slate Magazine, and New America. We are particularly grateful for the hard work of our readers, Adam Clark and Samantha Geiser, and our undergraduate researchers, Sakshi Hedge and Michelle Emmanuelli, as well as our colleagues Joey Eschrich, Kevin Bankston, Torie Bosch, Anthony Nguyen, Andr{\'e}s Martinez, the New America events and communications teams, and the Slate editorial team. We are indebted to the excellent feedback and suggestions of our advisory board and the participants in our lively discussions at the Future Tense workshop and public event in May 2019. This research was made possible thanks to funding from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Google. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021, The Author(s).",
year = "2023",
month = feb,
doi = "10.1007/s00146-021-01273-2",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "38",
pages = "197--211",
journal = "AI and Society",
issn = "0951-5666",
publisher = "Springer London",
number = "1",
}