Culpability (Oprah’s Book Club): A Novel

A tale that explores AI which in highly readable, whodunit style. Great character development and a plot that is difficult to predict. The best part, though, is the manner in which the author makes ethical distinctions and prioritizations more compelling by embodying them in the emotions of a fatal car crash and the familiar tensions of family dynamics

This may not be the 1st book written about the moral and ethical consequences of AI, but it is the 1st one I have read. This is a realistic family drama about what happens when a fatal car crash involving AI technology is used. The Shaw family are in the autonomous minivan-17-year-old Charlie is driving with his dad sitting shotgun, sisters in the back and mom, Lorelei a leader in AI technology is absorbed in her own work in the car when the tragic accident occurs. As the story unfolds, each family member has their own secrets and is therefore culpable. The story explores guilt and grief but also raises the deeper question of responsibility and the ethics of AI in a world dominated by machines and technology.
I really liked this book. I never really liked Lorelie, the mom, for reasons I won't go into because I don't want to spoil anything for a reader. I liked Noah, the dad. This is a very popular book right now and was a good book for discussion.

Compelling and informative about current events like entering the new frontier of AI

Thoughts provoking and well researched. I thought the author must have been a lawyer because he really captures that way of thinking so well. But also seems really knowledgeable about debates about AI. Highly recommend it.

“We do the world no good when we throw up our hands and surrender to the moral frameworks of algorithms. AIs are not aliens from another world. They are things of our all-too-human creation. We in turn are their Pygmalions, responsible for their design, their function, and yes, even their beauty. If necessary, we must also be responsible for their demise. And above all, we must never shy away from acting as their equals.” (343). “These new beings will only be as moral as we design them to be. Our morality in turn will be shaped by what we learn from them, and how we adapt accordingly.” (343) “Perhaps, in the near future, they might help us to be less cruel to one another, more generous and kind. Someday they might even teach us new ways to be good. But that will be up to us, not them.” (343) “But I can’t help my reaction, will never escape the churn of dreams, mistakes, regrets, and terrors that is fatherhood.” (353)