Silicon Valley Writes a Playbook to Help Avert Ethical Disasters

Wired recently featured Ethical OS, a tool kit developed by the Tech and Society Solutions Lab to help makers of tech, product managers, engineers, and others get out in front of problems before they happen. The three-part guide is already being piloted by nearly 20 tech companies, schools, and startups, including Mozilla and Techstars.

Paula Goldman, head of the Tech and Society Solutions Lab said: “Here we are in this new era where there’s a whole set of unintended societal consequences that are emerging as tech becomes more ubiquitous, and yet, tech companies haven’t caught up with the direct link between the products they have and being able to get ahead of that. The impetus for the Ethical OS toolkit was exactly that: Here’s a tool that helps you think through these consequences and makes sure what you’re designing is good for the world and good for your longer-term bottom line.”

Read the full article here.