How Does Information About AI Regulation Affect Managers’ Ethical Concerns and Intent to Adopt AI?
Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have become increasingly widespread over the last decade. As the use of artificial intelligence has become more common and the performance of AI systems has improved, policymakers, scholars, and advocates have also raised concerns. In this paper, we examine the impacts of potential artificial intelligence (AI) regulations on managers’ perceptions on ethical issues and intentions to adopt AI technologies. The authors find that information about varying kinds of AI regulation increases managers' perception of the importance of safety, privacy, bias/discrimination, and transparency issues related to AI. However, there is a tradeoff; regulation information reduces managers' stated intent to adopt AI technologies. Such trade-offs are likely to be associated with industry-specific characteristics, which holds implications for how new and intended AI regulations could affect varying industries differently. They recommend that businesses embrace new managerial standards and practices that detail AI liability under varying circumstances, even before it is prescribed. More robust internal audits and third- party examinations would provide more information for managers, reduce managerial uncertainty, and aid the development of AI products and services that are subject to higher ethical as well as legal and policy standards. (JEL: K24, L21, L51, O33, O38)