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arXiv · 2407.16362

Nudging Using Autonomous Agents: Risks and Ethical Considerations

Vivek Nallur·Karen Renaud·Aleksei Gudkov
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Abstract

This position paper briefly discusses nudging, its use by autonomous agents, potential risks and ethical considerations while creating such systems. Instead of taking a normative approach, which guides all situations, the paper proposes a risk-driven questions-and-answer approach. The paper takes the position that this is a pragmatic method, that is transparent about beneficial intentions, foreseeable risks, and mitigations. Given the uncertainty in AI and autonomous agent capabilities, we believe that such pragmatic methods offer a plausibly safe path, without sacrificing flexibility in domain and technology.

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Vivek Nallur, Karen Renaud, Aleksei Gudkov. 2024-07-23. Nudging Using Autonomous Agents: Risks and Ethical Considerations. https://arxiv.org/abs/2407.16362

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