Responsibilities

While the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance do not specify technology within the listed responsibilities, boards cannot carry out their oversight duties without considering how their companies use and manage technology and what are their management’s major technology plans, investments and partnerships.

Many responsibilities that apply to other modules are relevant to technology:

To act in good faith, with due diligence and care, boards should be fully informed about plans for applying AI in their strategy, AI’s alignment with core values and ethical standards, the risks associated with their AI strategy, and the regulations affecting the use of AI. Directors should have access to accurate, relevant and timely information.

To oversee corporate strategy, major plans of actions, risk management and budgets and business plans, boards should review and guide management’s vision, goals, actions and expenditures for AI, its support for innovation and using new AI resources, its awareness and plans for legal compliance and ameliorating AI risk, and competitors’ use and plans for AI.

To oversee corporate performance, expenditures and acquisitions, boards should review and guide AI’s alignment with strategy, shareholder values, ethics, performance and risk indicators, implementation of AI plans, the effectiveness of AI to accelerate processes and improve productivity, major investments in AI systems and talent, and acquisitions.

See the Responsibility module for more details about the G20/OECD Principles and the above responsibilities.

To carry out these responsibilities, boards – in particular, technology committees – should also review and guide these technology-specific concerns:

Act in good faith, with due diligence and care

• Develop realistic expectations about AI, its capabilities and its risks
• Be prepared to question and, if necessary, challenge technology executives and providers about the likelihood and technical requirements for AI success
• Understand the causes of AI project failures and overruns.

Oversee corporate strategy, major plans of actions, risk management and budgets and business plans

• Identify new benefits as AI technology as its capabilities evolve
• Establish governance guidelines for AI technology, and the acquisition, use and ownership of data used in AI systems
• Guard against the wrongful use of AI technology by ill-intentioned actors within and outside the company
• Implement appropriate measures to manage human safety, data privacy and cybersecurity risks at acceptable levels
• Understand and adequately address AI-specific risks, including the risks of inaccurate AI predictions, flawed decisions made by AI systems and robots, and misguided human interactions with AI systems
• Understand and adequately address the root causes of AI-specific risks, including lack of transparency and accountability, and biased, inaccurate or otherwise flawed data.

Oversee corporate performance, expenditures and acquisitions

• Are AI services and systems purchase decisions carried out fairly and competitively, without bribes, kickbacks or other corrupt practices and influence?
• Is AI the right solution/product for the problem?
• Do AI investments and activities follow priorities set by management?
• Does the IT organization have the resources needed to manage, maintain and upgrade its AI systems and the infrastructure on which it rests?
• When is an AI-based product feature safe enough to go public?
• Are users and providers of data used in AI systems managing data responsibly?