[MaFLA] Zvolenszky Zsófia: MIT’s Moral Machine Experiment: A cautionary tale about foreseeable societal impact (ELTE BTK, nov. 26. 18h)

Thu Feb 12 08:55:01 CET 2026

Kedves Kollégák!

Zvolenszky Zsófia (ELTE BTK Filozófia Intézet, Logika Tanszék) 2026. február 18-án, szerdán 18.00 órától tart előadást "MIT’s Moral Machine Experiment: A cautionary tale about foreseeable societal impact" címmel az ELTE BTK Filozófia Intézet Colloquium Philosophicum előadás-sorozata keretében.

Helyszín: ELTE BTK (Múzeum krt. 4.) "i" épület, 113-as terem.
A személyes jelenlét mellett az előadás online is követhető ezen a Zoom-linken.<https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84607483456?pwd=bRxwASkxdL1obm5bZWThVMAyJTaHxB.1>

Az előadásra és az azt követő diskusszióra angol nyelven kerül sor.

MIT’s Moral Machine Experiment: A cautionary tale about foreseeable societal impact
Automated vehicles – self-driving cars – have been forecast to be around-the-corner technology for over a decade. They have been receiving much attention – hype even – in media reporting as well as in academic debates on AI ethics. How have such discussions been conducted? And why is it key that we understand them better? I explore answers to these language-related questions through a case study.
Active between 2016 and 2020, the MIT Media Lab’s Moral Machine online research platform went viral, gathering moral judgments across the globe from 4 million respondents in 10 languages from 233 countries. Respondents considered, in various moral dilemma contexts, the question: “What should the self-driving car do?” (Awad, E., Dsouza, S, Kim, R., Schulz, J., Heinrich, J. Shariff, A., Bonnefon, J-F., Rahwan, I. The Moral Machine experiment. Nature 563, 59–64). The online platform is still available for the interested public to submit their judgments at http://moralmachine.mit.edu<http://moralmachine.mit.edu/>.
In my talk I will critically examine various features — the approach, language, methodology — of the Moral Machine experiment (MM), and their foreseeable societal impact. I will argue that these features call for considerably more hindsight, foresight as well as ethical guidelines when conducting research that polls prospective users of AI-systems. Specifically, an exploration of various policy recommendations in the European Union for automated vehicles were, through 2016-2020 negatively impacted by discussion focus shifting to moral dilemma cases – like those made viral by MM – and away from key ethical issues meriting consideration.

További információ: https://phil.elte.hu/content/colloquium-philosophicum-zvolenszky-zsofia-eloadasa.t.51476

Minden érdeklődőt örömmel várunk!

Üdvözlettel,
Mráz Attila

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Dr. MRÁZ, Attila (Ph.D., J.D.)
Egyetemi adjunktus / Assistant professor
ELTE BTK Filozófia Intézet, Újkori és Jelenkori Filozófia Tanszék /
ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Faculty of Humanities,
Institute of Philosophy, Dept. of Modern and Contemporary Philosophy
* Latest academic publications:

  *
"The Asymmetrical Political Ethics of the European Parliament: Responding to Undemocratically Elected Representatives from Backslid(ing) EU Member States"<https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcms.70039>, JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies, forthcoming.
  *
"<https://doi.org/10.1080/13698230.2025.2524980>Voters’ moral burdens, political equality, and resistance to far-right populism<https://doi.org/10.1080/13698230.2025.2524980>"<https://doi.org/10.1080/13698230.2025.2524980>, Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy 28(5): 773–794. (Open access<https://doi.org/10.1080/13698230.2025.2524980>)
  *
“Votare per salvare dal carcere?”<http://www.politeia-centrostudi.org/doc/Selezione/160/Politeia_160_Mraz.pdf> <http://www.politeia-centrostudi.org/doc/Selezione/160/Politeia_160_Mraz.pdf> [Voting for someone to rescue them from prison?], Notizie di Politeia XLI(160): 63–76. (Open access<http://www.politeia-centrostudi.org/doc/Selezione/160/Politeia_160_Mraz.pdf>)
  *
"Does Political Equality Require Equal Power? A Pluralist Account"<https://doi.org/10.1007/s10677-023-10425-w>, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, forthcoming. (Open access<https://doi.org/10.1007/s10677-023-10425-w>)
  *   "A Polarization-Containing Ethics of Campaign Advertising"<https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/auk-2023-2007/html>.<https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/auk-2023-2007/html> Analyse & Kritik 45(1): 111-135. (Open access<https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/auk-2023-2007/html>)
  *   “A Hard Case for the Ethics of Supported Voting: Cognitive and Communicative Disabilities, and Incommunicability”,<https://doi.org/10.1057/s41296-022-00602-4> Contemporary Political Theory 22(3): 353–374. (Open access<https://doi.org/10.1057/s41296-022-00602-4>)
  *   “How to Justify Mandatory Electoral Quotas? A Political Egalitarian Approach”<https://doi.org/10.1017/S1352325221000252>, Legal Theory 27(4): 285-315. (Open access<https://doi.org/10.1017/S1352325221000252>)

** Latest public writings:
“Not All Mandates Are Equal: The Immunity of Undemocratically Elected MEPs<https://verfassungsblog.de/not-all-mandates-are-equal/>” Verfassungsblog.
“Are Far-Right Ballots Protest Votes?<https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/are-far-right-ballots-protest-votes/>,” Green European Journal.
"May You Vote to Save the One?,"<https://www.publicethics.org/post/may-you-vote-to-save-the-one> The Public Ethics Blog.

** Magyarul:
Podcast: "Választási etika"<https://tilos.hu/episode/amirol-nem-lehet-beszelni/2025/09/01>, Amiről nem lehet beszélni.
"Etikus-e megszavaznom az adócsökkentést, csak mert az jó nekem?"<https://qubit.hu/2025/10/06/etikus-e-megszavaznom-az-adocsokkentest-csak-mert-az-jo-nekem> Qubit.
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