Islamic virtue-based ethics for artificial intelligence

The twenty-first century technological advances driven by exponential rise of artificial intelligence (AI) technology have ushered in a new era that offers many of us hitherto unimagined luxuries and facilities. However, under the guise of this progressive discourse, particularly in the backdrop of current neo-liberal late-capitalist postmodern world, AI development also has prompted an increasingly uncertain ethical tomorrow. This paper aims to probe the question of ethics by exploring the true ramifications of AI and interrogating its various ethical dimensions. It questions the essential goodness that is attributed to unstinted AI development before elucidating the ethical repercussions of AI advancements and the aptness of the current market logics and business models that govern the tech-industry. The paper next positions a holistic Islamic virtue-based AI ethics framework grounded in the context of Islamic objectives (maqāṣid) as an alternative ethical system for AI governance. We argue that this distinctive Islamic virtue-based ethical approach, which can be used to explore AI-related ethical problems more holistically due to its ontological base and rich tradition while keeping in check undue influence from the current socio-politico-economic climate, can be a valuable addition to the global discourse on AI ethics.