Ethics in the Age of AI: Building Responsible Digital Futures: Getting Started with Tech Ethics
Event Overview
This webinar will explore how ethical principles shape decision-making and system design with today's high impact systems, and in the age of AI. Participants will gain practical insights into navigating emerging technologies responsibly — balancing innovation with sustainability, inclusion, and professional integrity.
- IT's environmental footprint includes emerging AI systems and its potential to support climate goals, and the significant energy demands of model training. AI systems can either drive positive change or reinforce harm, depending on how they are designed, deployed, and monitored.
- Organisational ethical oversight is essential in AI for its use, and broader global oversight is going to grow as AI’s development and impact often cross borders and affect diverse communities.
- Responsible AI is achievable, with practical tools and frameworks available to guide ethical, inclusive, and sustainable implementation.
What you’ll learn:
The session will explain some of the support available, from the BCS Ethics Specialist Group to BCS CPD resources, and the recently published book, Getting Started with Tech Ethics, including coverage of:
- Lifecycle ethics in digital systems and AI
- Translating professional codes into daily IT practice
- Whistleblowing, organisational culture, and ethical safeguards
- Sustainability and the UN SDGs: helping to frame ethical activity
- Navigating ethical tensions in emerging tech (e.g., generative AI, blockchain, quantum computing)
- Socio-technical impact assessments and stakeholder engagement
Who should attend:
The webinar is relevant to computing professionals and leaders responsible for IT systems. Embedding ethics into company culture involves a whole range of roles.It is also highly relevant to educators and policy makers as it highlights the issues that we need to address across society.
Agenda (outline):
- Welcome & introductions
- Tech ethics today – why it matters
- Professional ethics
- Company ethics
- Global IT ethics
- Emerging issues
- Q&A
