MIT AI Risk Repository · Risk Category · 44.01.00

Intentional: socially condemned/illegal

Open the MIT Risk Navigator All entries from Coghlan2023

Description

"Many intentional harms, including confinement, husbandry procedures like tail-docking, and slaughter, are legal or socially accepted, while others such as wildlife trafficking and violence against companion animals are generally socially condemned and often illegal. AI can be designed or adopted by humans who harm animals to pursue their goals more effectively. We therefore distinguish AI-facilitated intentional harms that are currently socially accepted and generally legal, from uses and abuses of AI that cause harms that are not socially accepted and are often illegal."

From Harm to Nonhuman Animals from AI: a Systematic Account and Framework (Coghlan2023 ), as extracted by the MIT AI Risk Repository (CC BY 4.0).

Classification

Domain: 6. Socioeconomic & Environmental
Subdomain: 6.6 Environmental harm
Causal entity: Human
Intent: Intentional
Timing: Post-deployment

Subdomain definition: The development and operation of AI systems causing environmental harm, such as through energy consumption of data centers, or material and carbon footprints associated with AI hardware.

Real-world incidents in this subdomain

5 Jun 2024xAI Allegedly Operates Unpermitted Methane Turbines in Memphis to Power Supercomputer Colossus to Train Grok

Browse all incidents in this subdomain

How other frameworks describe this risk

Excessive water consumption
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)
Excessive energy consumption
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)
Electronic waste
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)
Natural resource depletion
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)
Excessive landfill
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)
Biodiversity loss
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)
Carbon emissions
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)
Pollution
A Collaborative, Human-Centred Taxonomy of AI, Algorithmic, and Automation Harms (Abercrombie2024)

Other entries from Coghlan2023

AI intentionally designed and used to harm animals in ways that contradict social values or are illegal Risk Sub-Category · 6.6
AI intentionally designed and used to harm animals in ways that contradict social values or are illegal Additional evidence
AI designed to benefit animals, humans, or ecosystems is intentionally abused to harm animals in ways that contradict social values or are illegal Risk Sub-Category · 6.6
AI designed to benefit animals, humans, or ecosystems is intentionally abused to harm animals in ways that contradict social values or are illegal Additional evidence
Intentional: socially accepted/legal Risk Category · 6.6
Intentional: socially accepted/legal Additional evidence
Intentional: socially accepted/legal Additional evidence
Unintentional: direct Risk Category · 6.6
AI is designed in a way that shows ignorant, reckless, or prejudiced lack of consideration for its impact on animals Risk Sub-Category · 6.6
AI is designed in a way that shows ignorant, reckless, or prejudiced lack of consideration for its impact on animals Additional evidence
AI is designed in a way that shows ignorant, reckless, or prejudiced lack of consideration for its impact on animals Additional evidence
AI harms animals due to mistake or misadventure in the way the AI operates in practice Risk Sub-Category · 6.6