There’s no such thing as “the ethics of AI,” because there are different types of AI, and differing visions of the use of AI. And these uses are constantly developing, while diverse ethical concerns appear at the personal, corporate, and societal levels. In general, “the world” is concerned about control and equality (“How can we regulate it, if we do not even know how it works?” or “Will AI magnify inequalities of wealth and power?”) primarily as they relate to big systems such as the economy. Meanwhile, the Church, I take it, is most interested in souls and therefore personal virtues and human good.
One great folly is to suppose that a chatbot is truly a mind, or even an embodied person with a heart. In such a case, the ethical lapse is entirely in the human user.
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Michael Pakaluk, an Aristotle scholar and Ordinarius of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas, is Professor of Political Economy in the Busch School of Business at the Catholic University of America. He lives in Hyattsville, MD with his wife Catherine, also a professor at the Busch School, and their children. His collection of essays, The Shock of Holiness (Ignatius Press) is now available. His book on Christian friendship, The Company We Keep, is forthcoming this fall from Scepter Press. He was a contributor to Natural Law: Five Views, published by Zondervan last May, and his most recent Gospel book came out with Regnery Gateway in March, Be Good Bankers: The Economic Interpretation of Matthew’s Gospel.