We are at the beginning of a new age, where technology has the ability to influence us in ways we have never seen before. Why is this? The type of technology that we are now (and will soon be facing) has an unprecedented “augmentation” element fueled by AI, quantum computing and other technologies (more below). We can expect, given their immense power, that these technologies will present us with some fascinating challenges and surprises, some of which we may find helpful, some pleasant, and some that are not. What does this mean in terms of a legal or regulatory framework? According to my view, the situation isn’t very good. Most of our early-stage standards, laws and regulations are not up to par. Most are riddled by shallow, vague and unrealistic language. The environment is ideal for creating buzz, but it’s not much more than that. The “augmentation” effect on persuasion is not given much attention. To be clear, this is not surprising. The laws, regulations and all the standards and best practice that are incorporated into them are almost always several steps behind the technological advances and their exponential rate of adoption.
On a high-level, the “augmentation” concept initially focused on the relationship of the power and capabilities of AI or quantum technology in generating unpredictable outcomes from the data that these technologies were used with. The “augmentation” concept recognized that, the greater the power and capability of an AI/and/or quantum computing application is, the higher the likelihood that latent data values will be generated. This tends to have a destabilizing effect on transactions. When AI and quantum computing are used to augment data that was not initially deemed valuable and that had been allowed to be used without restriction, the data suddenly becomes more valuable. Data owners’ new interest and recognition in limiting use may have a destabilizing effect on the transactional effects. However, it could be too late.
Now let’s turn to the topic of persuasion, and how that relates to augmentation. Stanford professor B.J. Fogg’s book, The Power of Technology to Persuade People, was titled and focused on the subject of how technology can persuade. Fogg: Computers as Persuasive Technologies: Using them to Change what we think and do. In this book Professor Fogg uses the term “Captology”, which stands for computers as convincing technologies, to describe an eco-system in which interactive computer system are designed to alter people’s attitudes and behaviors. Fogg’s Captology can be represented as a triad of functions, where computers are used as “tools”, “media” and “social actors”. As “media”, they provide an experience to people. As “social actors”, they create relationships by rewarding positive feedback and creating relationships.
It is important to consider how to create guardrails that will minimize the possibility of abusive persuasion, short of deception. AI Core Principles can be a good place to begin. While they were created with AI in the mind, much of the content is applicable to quantum computing. The Principles, unlike many of the high-level discussions around current legal and regulatory initiatives offer practical, actionable advice that can help reduce the potential harm that could come from augmentation.