» The negative effects of social media algorithms were an early warning for the consequences of generative AI
» As product managers, we have a duty of care to our users
» The unpredictability of genAI poses varying risks of harm to users depending on the context
» By reinstating Sam Altman, OpenAI has chosen financial success over its altruistic principles
» When Steve Jobs left Apple in 1985, the board believed he wasn’t ready to be CEO
» Google was quick to fire ethicist Timnit Gebru when she challenged its lucrative search advertising business
» Desire paths spring up as users’ needs and goals change
» The effort paradox: the effort of forming a new path versus the desire to take the path of least resistance
» In digital products we use analytical tools to help us observe desire paths
» When a new desire path emerges, question your old assumptions — user behaviour is changing
» Thematic analysis identifies the main themes emerging from qualitative data, such as interview transcripts
» It can be a great activity to do with your team for establishing empathy with the users and their context
» Good research means being intentional, conscientious, and ethical at every step
» A mobile phone may be all you need to record an interview
» For in-person recordings, keep your setup simple and portable
» The simplest way to record video calls is to use the local or cloud recording option
» Consider carefully whether to record an interview or to have a dedicated note-taker
» When there is a financial incentive, people will industrialise technology to automate money-making activities
» Authoritative-sounding yet factually inaccurate content generated by AIs is harmful
» Product managers should be primarily concerned with what is best for users from an ethical point of view
» Data ethics studies and evaluates moral problems related to data, algorithms and corresponding practices, in order to formulate and support morally good solutions
» Product managers have ethical responsibilities that transcend career, company and profit
» Organisations need to assess and build their trust and trustworthiness
» Mitigate biases in your product that may have unintended discriminatory effects on individuals and social groups
» Product managers must understand the impact of their products on society as a whole
» Now is the time to push for broader product management accountability
» No company, individual or set of activities, yet provides a clear-cut example of ethical best practice
» What we build must not be at the cost of another group’s needs
» Nothing in traditional product training prepares you for making ethical decisions
I perhaps naïvely assume that a company’s stated product vision and corporate mission are what the organisation is actively working towards. Disappointingly, this is not always the case.
