LG Twin Towers in Yeouido, Seoul. [Yonhap]
LG AI Research Lab and UNESCO launched a global AI Ethics Massive Open Online Course project Monday, unveiling a curriculum available free of charge to anyone in the world.
The launch event was held at the UNESCO Korea Commission in Myeong-dong, Seoul. Attendees included UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon, UNESCO Korea Commission Secretary-General Hong Hyun-ik and LG AI Research Lab Co-Director Im Woo-hyung.
A conference held that day under the theme “Embedding Ethics for Responsible AI Innovation and Industry Practice” brought together leading scholars who contributed to the project’s development — among them Georgina Curto Rex, a researcher at the United Nations University and one of the key contributors to UNESCO’s AI ethics recommendation; Sion Guha, a professor at the University of Toronto; and Maha Jouini, head of digital communications at the African Union. Representatives from the AI Safety Institute, Naver and Kakao also attended.
“Principles alone do not produce ethical AI,” UNESCO Director-General El-Enany said. “Translating AI ethics recommendations into practical training will further consolidate our leading role in moving declarative consensus toward implementation across the full AI lifecycle.”
Deputy Prime Minister Bae said AI presents humanity with transformative opportunities while raising new ethical and social challenges. “For a safe and trustworthy AI ecosystem, it is vital that the international community establish shared principles and standards and put them into practice together,” he said.
LG AI Research Lab and UNESCO unveiled the AI Ethics MOOC project two years after signing a partnership agreement on the sidelines of the AI Seoul Summit in May 2024. It marks the first time a private Korean AI research institution has jointly developed a global education program with a UN specialized agency.
The two organizations partnered with Coursera — the online learning platform founded by AI scholar Andrew Ng — to deliver the AI ethics curriculum to learners worldwide.
The program comprises 10 modules developed and reviewed with input from leading universities and institutions in global AI ethics. It is grounded in UNESCO’s AI ethics recommendation, adopted unanimously by member states in 2021, and focuses on building practical skills for developers, researchers and policymakers to apply in the field.
Building on the MOOC project, LG AI Research Lab and UNESCO plan to pilot AI ethics training for developers and researchers in the second half of this year, then expand the curriculum to five to 10 hub universities across the country next year.
The project has drawn attention as an example of South Korea shifting from a consumer of global norms to a producer of AI ethics education content for the world to use. It is seen as a turning point demonstrating that private-sector-led international cooperation can strengthen global AI governance.
Under the management philosophy of LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, LG has pursued AI technology development aimed at changing the world alongside efforts to establish and practice ethical guidelines. “We hope this global MOOC course will serve as a practical foundation for working developers and researchers to build a trustworthy AI ecosystem, and as a catalyst for accelerating responsible innovation across the industry,” said Im Woo-hyung, co-director of LG AI Research Lab.
jeongwan@heraldcorp.com
This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.
