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A company is considering buying a program that uses artificial intelligence to answer technical support calls. If the machine cannot answer the question, the customer will be passed on to the technical support workers. Discuss the implications of this technology.

The following example has been taken from an AQA past paper. It reflects the type of question that may appear in an exam paper.

How to tackle the question

The question can be broken down into four key points:

1. Identify the stakeholders
2. Identify any technology involved
3. Identify any potential issues associated with the topic, such as social, cultural, legal and environmental concerns
4. Describe the effects of those issues on the stakeholders

Identify the stakeholders

In the context of this question, the stakeholders could be:

• the owners of the company
• the employees of the company
• the customers

Identify the technology involved

In the context of this question, the technology could be:

• the internet
• natural language interface, eg Siri, Google 91�ȱ�, Alexa
• artificial intelligence

Identify the issues associated with the topic

In the context of the question, the issues could be:

• legal - Is the company allowed to use customers’ data?
• social - Will jobs be put at risk?
• social - Will jobs change?
• cultural - Is it ok that the technology involved means customers will have to engage in conversations with a computer instead of humans?
• cultural - Can - and should - a computer replace a human?

Describe how the issues may affect the stakeholders

In the context of the present question, the implications could be:

• The owners may have to pay a large amount for the software, but it may save them money in the long run because they won’t have to pay the AI assistant for the hours worked.
• The AI can work 24 hours a day, so basic technical help will be available to customers for longer. This could improve the relationship between the customer and company.
• Not all technical staff may be able to train to answer more detailed questions and may be replaced by the technology, causing a loss of jobs.
• The use of the program may require fewer technical support staff, so jobs may be lost.
• Because the AI assistant can answer the basic questions, this would free up the staff to answer more technical questions. This may mean they have the opportunity for training and potentially higher pay.
• Not all customers will feel comfortable talking to a computer about their technical issues. This could have a negative impact on the relationship between the customer and company.
• With newer technology, it is not always obvious that you are talking to a computer. If the computer passes the Turing Test, the customer may be upset that they thought they were talking to a person. This can be addressed by stating that the call is answered by AI at the start.