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Data justice in AI for health in Aotearoa: a scoping literature review

Year:
2025
Duration:
3 months
Approved budget:
$7,500.00
Researchers:
Mr Zhiheng Dai
,
Dr Tania Moerenhout
Host:
University of Otago
Proposal type:
Ethics Summer Studentship
Lay summary
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is progressing rapidly in the healthcare sector, from note-taking for doctors to interpreting imaging for breast cancer diagnosis. These functions require huge datasets to train AI successfully; however, who and how people are represented in datasets becomes important, dictating how AI behaves. For example, AI that detects skin cancer performs worse on darker skin compared to lighter skin, because people with darker skin are underrepresented in the training data. Data justice refers to the fairness in how people are represented and treated regarding their data. The vast quantities of data used for AI mean that data justice is paramount to ensure fair outcomes, especially in healthcare. This project will examine the concept of data justice and its implications for AI and healthcare, and explore frameworks for the ethical use of AI in health, how data justice is included, and how these can be applied in Aotearoa.