Autonomous Moral Agent

An autonomous moral agent (AMA) is a nonhuman computer system that acts autonomously in interactions with humans and produces statements or actions with moral significance for which it can be held morally responsible. Traditionally, humans consider themselves to be moral agents with autonomy who take actions and make decisions with moral and ethical consequences for which they can be held accountable. AMAs are computer systems, software, robots, and other forms of information technology, which can similarly be held responsible or partially accountable for the moral consequences of their actions, considered apart from the responsibility of the system’s designer(s). Compared with other types of computer systems that merely followed predefined instructions that govern specific interactions, the key characteristic of an AMA is the possession of moral ...