The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Responsible Research and Innovation in Industry
This thesis investigates the applications of AI by businesses and how to reconcile it with the notion of social responsibility.
Topic, Relevance & Impact: While the popularity of artificial intelligence (AI) in the research fields of economics and business has been on a steep rise over the last few years, many central questions about the adoption and use of AI remain underexplored. This is especially true when searching for a firm-level perspective on the application of AI. This dissertation project seeks to investigate the potential influence of AI applications on the innovation management processes within companies using quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. Moreover, a focal point of this dissertation is set on the ethical considerations faced by companies using AI for innovation endeavours. To this end, the framework of Responsible Research & Innovation (RRI) is mapped onto AI practices in industry. My dissertation aims to contribute a practical perspective on how responsible AI is and may be developed and implemented on the firm-level, how businesses can be part of a necessary multi-stakeholder process as well as it develops future research agendas for management studies.
Research Questions: (1) How can AI be leveraged as a tool within firm-level innovation processes? (a) Which stages of the innovation management process can be affected by current (future) AI technology? (b) How (much) is AI being employed for innovation endeavors by companies already? (2) How can socio-ethical considerations for using AI as a tool to innovate be incorporated into firm-level innovation processes? (a) Which ethical issues arise from AI’s influence on firm-level innovation processes? (b) How can ethical issues connected to AI in the innovation processes be mitigated within companies?