Research Papers

In this extended abstract, we will present and discuss opportunities and challenges brought about by a new deep learning method by AUC maximization (aka \underline{\bf D}eep \underline{\bf A}UC \underline{\bf M}aximization or {\bf DAM}) for medical image classification. Since AUC (aka area under ROC curve) is a standard performance measure for medical image classification, hence directly optimizing AUC could achieve a better performance for learning a deep neural network than minimizing a traditional loss function (e.g., cross-entropy loss). Recently, there emerges a trend of using deep AUC maximization for large-scale medical image classification. In this paper, we will discuss these recent results by highlighting (i) the advancements brought by stochastic non-convex optimization algorithms for DAM; (ii) the promising results on various medical image classification problems. Then, we will discuss challenges and opportunities of DAM for medical image classification from three perspectives, feature learning, large-scale optimization, and learning trustworthy AI models.

In this chapter we argue that discourses on AI must transcend the language of 'ethics' and engage with power and political economy in order to constitute 'Good Data'. In particular, we must move beyond the depoliticised language of 'ethics' currently deployed (Wagner 2018) in determining whether AI is 'good' given the limitations of ethics as a frame through which AI issues can be viewed. In order to circumvent these limits, we use instead the language and conceptualisation of 'Good Data', as a more expansive term to elucidate the values, rights and interests at stake when it comes to AI's development and deployment, as well as that of other digital technologies. Good Data considerations move beyond recurring themes of data protection/privacy and the FAT (fairness, transparency and accountability) movement to include explicit political economy critiques of power. Instead of yet more ethics principles (that tend to say the same or similar things anyway), we offer four 'pillars' on which Good Data AI can be built: community, rights, usability and politics. Overall we view AI's 'goodness' as an explicly political (economy) question of power and one which is always related to the degree which AI is created and used to increase the wellbeing of society and especially to increase the power of the most marginalized and disenfranchised. We offer recommendations and remedies towards implementing 'better' approaches towards AI. Our strategies enable a different (but complementary) kind of evaluation of AI as part of the broader socio-technical systems in which AI is built and deployed.

The game industry has long been troubled by malicious activities utilizing game bots. The game bots disturb other game players and destroy the environmental system of the games. For these reasons, the game industry put their best efforts to detect the game bots among players' characters using the learning-based detections. However, one problem with the detection methodologies is that they do not provide rational explanations about their decisions. To resolve this problem, in this work, we investigate the explainabilities of the game bot detection. We develop the XAI model using a dataset from the Korean MMORPG, AION, which includes game logs of human players and game bots. More than one classification model has been applied to the dataset to be analyzed by applying interpretable models. This provides us explanations about the game bots' behavior, and the truthfulness of the explanations has been evaluated. Besides, interpretability contributes to minimizing false detection, which imposes unfair restrictions on human players.

Evidence-based explanation to promote fairness in AI systems

Juliana Jansen Ferreira, Mateus de Souza Monteiro

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology gets more intertwined with every system, people are using AI to make decisions on their everyday activities. In simple contexts, such as Netflix recommendations, or in more complex context like in judicial scenarios, AI is part of people's decisions. People make decisions and usually, they need to explain their decision to others or in some matter. It is particularly critical in contexts where human expertise is central to decision-making. In order to explain their decisions with AI support, people need to understand how AI is part of that decision. When considering the aspect of fairness, the role that AI has on a decision-making process becomes even more sensitive since it affects the fairness and the responsibility of those people making the ultimate decision. We have been exploring an evidence-based explanation design approach to 'tell the story of a decision'. In this position paper, we discuss our approach for AI systems using fairness sensitive cases in the literature.

Trustworthy AI

Jeannette M. Wing

The promise of AI is huge. AI systems have already achieved good enough performance to be in our streets and in our homes. However, they can be brittle and unfair. For society to reap the benefits of AI systems, society needs to be able to trust them. Inspired by decades of progress in trustworthy computing, we suggest what trustworthy properties would be desired of AI systems. By enumerating a set of new research questions, we explore one approach--formal verification--for ensuring trust in AI. Trustworthy AI ups the ante on both trustworthy computing and formal methods.

Investigating Label Bias and Representational Sources of Age-Related Disparities in Medical Segmentation

Aditya Parikh, Sneha Das, Aasa Feragen

Algorithmic bias in medical imaging can perpetuate health disparities, yet its causes remain poorly understood in segmentation tasks. While fairness has been extensively studied in classification, segmentation remains underexplored despite its clinical importance. In breast cancer segmentation, models exhibit significant performance disparities against younger patients, commonly attributed to physiological differences in breast density. We audit the MAMA-MIA dataset, establishing a quantitative baseline of age-related bias in its automated labels, and reveal a critical Biased Ruler effect where systematically flawed labels for validation misrepresent a model's actual bias. However, whether this bias originates from lower-quality annotations (label bias) or from fundamentally more challenging image characteristics remains unclear. Through controlled experiments, we systematically refute hypotheses that the bias stems from label quality sensitivity or quantitative case difficulty imbalance. Balancing training data by difficulty fails to mitigate the disparity, revealing that younger patient cases are intrinsically harder to learn. We provide direct evidence that systemic bias is learned and amplified when training on biased, machine-generated labels, a critical finding for automated annotation pipelines. This work introduces a systematic framework for diagnosing algorithmic bias in medical segmentation and demonstrates that achieving fairness requires addressing qualitative distributional differences rather than merely balancing case counts.

Assessing Algorithmic Bias in Language-Based Depression Detection: A Comparison of DNN and LLM Approaches

Obed Junias, Prajakta Kini, Theodora Chaspari

This paper investigates algorithmic bias in language-based models for automated depression detection, focusing on socio-demographic disparities related to gender and race/ethnicity. Models trained using deep neural networks (DNN) based embeddings are compared to few-shot learning approaches with large language models (LLMs), evaluating both performance and fairness on clinical interview transcripts from the Distress Analysis Interview Corpus/Wizard-of-Oz (DAIC-WOZ). To mitigate bias, fairness-aware loss functions are applied to DNN-based models, while in-context learning with varied prompt framing and shot counts is explored for LLMs. Results indicate that LLMs outperform DNN-based models in depression classification, particularly for underrepresented groups such as Hispanic participants. LLMs also exhibit reduced gender bias compared to DNN-based embeddings, though racial disparities persist. Among fairness-aware techniques for mitigating bias in DNN-based embeddings, the worst-group loss, which is designed to minimize loss for the worst-performing demographic group, achieves a better balance between performance and fairness. In contrast, the fairness-regularized loss minimizes loss across all groups but performs less effectively. In LLMs, guided prompting with ethical framing helps mitigate gender bias in the 1-shot setting. However, increasing the number of shots does not lead to further reductions in disparities. For race/ethnicity, neither prompting strategy nor increasing $N$ in $N$-shot learning effectively reduces disparities.

AI-driven digital ecosystems span diverse stakeholders including technology firms, regulators, accelerators and civil society, yet often lack cohesive ethical governance. This paper proposes a four-pillar framework (SCOR) to embed accountability, fairness, and inclusivity across such multi-actor networks. Leveraging a design science approach, we develop a Shared Ethical Charter(S), structured Co-Design and Stakeholder Engagement protocols(C), a system of Continuous Oversight and Learning(O), and Adaptive Regulatory Alignment strategies(R). Each component includes practical guidance, from lite modules for resource-constrained start-ups to in-depth auditing systems for larger consortia. Through illustrative vignettes in healthcare, finance, and smart city contexts, we demonstrate how the framework can harmonize organizational culture, leadership incentives, and cross-jurisdictional compliance. Our mixed-method KPI design further ensures that quantitative targets are complemented by qualitative assessments of user trust and cultural change. By uniting ethical principles with scalable operational structures, this paper offers a replicable pathway toward responsible AI innovation in complex digital ecosystems.

The rapid emergence of generative AI has changed the way that technology is designed, constructed, maintained, and evaluated. Decisions made when creating AI-powered systems may impact some users disproportionately, such as people with disabilities. In this paper, we report on an interview study with 25 AI practitioners across multiple roles (engineering, research, UX, and responsible AI) about how their work processes and artifacts may impact end users with disabilities. We found that practitioners experienced friction when triaging problems at the intersection of responsible AI and accessibility practices, navigated contradictions between accessibility and responsible AI guidelines, identified gaps in data about users with disabilities, and gathered support for addressing the needs of disabled stakeholders by leveraging informal volunteer and community groups within their company. Based on these findings, we offer suggestions for new resources and process changes to better support people with disabilities as end users of AI.

Underwater image enhancement is vital for marine conservation, particularly coral reef monitoring. However, AI-based enhancement models often face dataset bias, high computational costs, and lack of transparency, leading to potential misinterpretations. This paper introduces EBA-AI, an ethics-guided bias-aware AI framework to address these challenges. EBA-AI leverages CLIP embeddings to detect and mitigate dataset bias, ensuring balanced representation across varied underwater environments. It also integrates adaptive processing to optimize energy efficiency, significantly reducing GPU usage while maintaining competitive enhancement quality. Experiments on LSUI400, Oceanex, and UIEB100 show that while PSNR drops by a controlled 1.0 dB, computational savings enable real-time feasibility for large-scale marine monitoring. Additionally, uncertainty estimation and explainability techniques enhance trust in AI-driven environmental decisions. Comparisons with CycleGAN, FunIEGAN, RAUNENet, WaterNet, UGAN, PUGAN, and UTUIE validate EBA-AI's effectiveness in balancing efficiency, fairness, and interpretability in underwater image processing. By addressing key limitations of AI-driven enhancement, this work contributes to sustainable, bias-aware, and computationally efficient marine conservation efforts. For interactive visualizations, animations, source code, and access to the preprint, visit: https://lyessaadsaoud.github.io/EBA-AI/

The rapid growth of YouTube Shorts, now serving over 2 billion monthly users, reflects a global shift toward short-form video as a dominant mode of online content consumption. This study investigates algorithmic bias in YouTube Shorts' recommendation system by analyzing how watch-time duration, topic sensitivity, and engagement metrics influence content visibility and drift. We focus on three content domains: the South China Sea dispute, the 2024 Taiwan presidential election, and general YouTube Shorts content. Using generative AI models, we classified 685,842 videos across relevance, topic category, and emotional tone. Our results reveal a consistent drift away from politically sensitive content toward entertainment-focused videos. Emotion analysis shows a systematic preference for joyful or neutral content, while engagement patterns indicate that highly viewed and liked videos are disproportionately promoted, reinforcing popularity bias. This work provides the first comprehensive analysis of algorithmic drift in YouTube Shorts based on textual content, emotional tone, topic categorization, and varying watch-time conditions. These findings offer new insights into how algorithmic design shapes content exposure, with implications for platform transparency and information diversity.

Infertility has a considerable impact on individuals' quality of life, affecting them socially and psychologically, with projections indicating a rise in the upcoming years. In vitro fertilization (IVF) emerges as one of the primary techniques within economically developed nations, employed to address the rising problem of low fertility. Expert embryologists conventionally grade embryos by reviewing blastocyst images to select the most optimal for transfer, yet this process is time-consuming and lacks efficiency. Blastocyst images provide a valuable resource for assessing embryo viability. In this study, we introduce an explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) framework for classifying embryos, employing a fusion of convolutional neural network (CNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM) architecture, referred to as CNN-LSTM. Utilizing deep learning, our model achieves high accuracy in embryo classification while maintaining interpretability through XAI.