INTHEBLACK September 2024 special edition - Flipbook - Page 35
The adoption of generative
artificial intelligence (AI)
tools is accelerating.
Ethical concerns around
generative AI usage include
privacy, bias and trust.
T
he growing prominence of generative AI
tools like ChatGPT has sparked discussions
about whether using them is appropriate,
particularly in professional settings. The
capabilities and methods of AI tools are under
scrutiny, raising questions about their reliability and
ethical implications.
For accountants and other professionals, the
challenge lies in balancing a healthy scepticism
and objectivity with an open-minded approach to
the potential benefits of these technologies. This
balance is crucial to ensure that the integration of AI
enhances their work without compromising ethical
standards and professional integrity.
Remaining informed and cautious about the
limitations and risks of AI, while also exploring its
potential to improve efficiency and decision-making,
can help professionals make well-rounded and
ethical choices in their use of emerging technologies.
THE RISE OF GENERATIVE AI
GPT – short for “generative pre-training transformer”
– is a type of AI adept at understanding and creating
human language.
Accountants are increasingly using generative AI
tools to help analyse historical financial data to make
predictions about future trends.
AI algorithms can detect irregularities and
anomalies in financial transactions, and they can
automate the generation of financial reports, such as
balance sheets and cash flow statements.
AI powered tools are also being used to assist in
audits by analysing vast amounts of financial data
to identify potential audit risks. They can enhance
client service and support by answering common
accounting related queries.
“AI has delivered many advantages, but
there is a need for scepticism, because it does
present challenges and ethical concerns,” says
Anju De Alwis FCPA, who is managing director of
Ultimate Access Education Institute and chair of
CPA Australia’s Ethics and Professional Standards
Centre of Excellence.
Objectivity and scepticism
are vital for accountants who
use AI tools in their work.
These concerns include data privacy and security,
bias and discrimination, trust and the role of human
judgement. If generative AI tools are “black boxes”, how
can the validity of their answers be evaluated properly?
“We have AI that we know works, but we
can’t explain precisely why,” says ethics expert
Dr Simon Longstaff AO FCPA, who is executive
director of The Ethics Centre.
“That is because the way the large language
models and other systems operate means they can
be trained to produce a result. However, it is not like
an older form of computer logic, where you could
see that A leads to B leads to C.
“We don’t have ‘explainable AI’ at the moment,”
Longstaff adds. “People are trying to work out how
to interrogate what’s happening, or to create systems
that can be explained, but it means we are currently
using things that we don’t fully understand in terms
of their internal operations.”
Regulation has always required appropriate levels
of governance around technology. When personally
identifiable information is involved, for example,
there are regulations that dictate what companies
must and must not do.
Professor Matt Kuperholz, data scientist with
Deakin University’s Centre for AI and the Future of
Business, notes that forward thinking companies
have already created “ethical guardrails” to ensure
their use of these technologies is appropriate and in
line with their customers’ expectations.
“We don’t put brakes into a race car so we can go
slowly,” Kuperholz says.
“We put brakes into a race car so we can go really
quickly, but safely. Most organisations have been
using AI for a long time, even if it’s simply through
something like a recommendation engine or a third
party piece of marketing software.
“I think now it’s just very obvious that AI is hitting
the mainstream, and we have seen things like
generative pre trained transformers being integrated
into things like the Microsoft Office Suite and the
Google Suite, so they have been landing on every
desktop,” Kuperholz says.
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