To harness the true potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for societal betterment, we need to move away from prioritising corporate interests which exploit Global South workers in the digital age. The unpaid labour and societal harms which are generated by Digital Value Networks (DVNs) disproportionately affect workers in Africa, Latin America, and India and need to be regulated. In this research, we discuss unethical practices to automate Human Intelligence Tasks (HITs) through gig work platforms and the capitalisation of data collection utilising influencers in social media. These are important areas of study in worker and user data practices, where ethical AI could be impactful. We provide suggestions for a path forward focused on responsible AI development.

In this meta-ethnography, we explore three different angles of Ethical AI design and implementation in a top-down/bottom-up framework, including the philosophical ethical viewpoint, the technical perspective, and framing through a political lens. We will discuss the values and drawbacks of individual and hybrid approaches within this framework. Examples of approaches include ethics either being determined by corporations and governments (coming from the top), or ethics being called for by the people (coming from the bottom), as well as top-down, bottom-up, and hybrid technicalities of how AI is developed within a moral construct, in consideration of its developers and users, with expected and unexpected consequences and long-term impact. This investigation includes real-world case studies, philosophical debate, and theoretical future thought experimentation based on historical facts, current world circumstances, and possible ensuing realities.