Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the most influential digital developments shaping modern society, making it a key area of inquiry in IB Digital Society. From automated decision-making to predictive systems, AI affects how choices are made, resources are allocated, and people are evaluated. IB Digital Society does not approach AI as a technical subject, but as a social system with real consequences for people and communities.

This article explains how artificial intelligence is examined in IB Digital Society and how students should analyze it in exams, classroom inquiry, and the internal assessment.

What Is Artificial Intelligence in IB Digital Society?

In IB Digital Society, artificial intelligence refers to digital systems that use data, algorithms, and automation to perform tasks that typically require human judgment. These tasks may include pattern recognition, prediction, classification, or decision-making.

Students are not expected to understand how AI is programmed. Instead, they must understand:

• What AI systems are designed to do
• How they operate within society
• Who controls them
• What impacts and implications they create

AI is treated as a decision-making system, not just advanced technology.

Where AI Appears in Digital Society

AI is embedded in many everyday digital systems. Examples include:

• Automated decision tools
• Recommendation and ranking systems
• Predictive analytics
• Image, voice, or text analysis systems

In IB Digital Society, the focus is on how these systems shape experiences, opportunities, and outcomes for different groups.

Impacts of AI on Individuals

At the individual level, AI can influence access, opportunity, and autonomy.

Potential impacts include:

• Increased efficiency and convenience
• Reduced need for human decision-making
• Loss of transparency in outcomes
• Reduced ability to challenge decisions

Students should analyze how individuals experience AI differently depending on their role, background, or vulnerability.

Impacts of AI on Communities

At the community level, AI can reshape social structures and reinforce existing inequalities.

Community-level impacts may include:

• Normalization of automated judgment
• Unequal distribution of risks and benefits
• Reduced accountability for harmful outcomes
• Dependence on opaque systems

IB Digital Society encourages students to consider how AI affects groups rather than focusing only on individual experiences.

Power and Control in AI Systems

AI concentrates power in the hands of those who design, deploy, and control systems. Decisions once made by humans may now be automated, reducing oversight and accountability.

Power issues arise when:

• Decision-making processes are hidden
• Affected individuals cannot appeal outcomes
• Systems operate at scale
• Responsibility is unclear

Analyzing who controls AI systems and how that control is exercised is essential for high-quality Digital Society responses.

Ethical Issues Raised by Artificial Intelligence

Ethics is central to the study of AI in IB Digital Society. Students are expected to evaluate whether AI systems are fair, responsible, and justified.

Key ethical questions include:

• Should AI replace human judgment in sensitive areas?
• Are outcomes explainable and transparent?
• How are errors or harm addressed?
• Do benefits outweigh potential risks?

Ethical analysis requires balancing efficiency with human dignity and accountability.

Bias and Fairness in AI

AI systems rely on data, and data often reflects historical and social inequalities. As a result, AI may reproduce or amplify bias even without intent.

Students should analyze:

• How bias enters AI systems
• Which groups are disadvantaged
• Whether safeguards exist
• How bias affects trust and legitimacy

Avoiding simplistic claims about bias and focusing on mechanisms strengthens analysis.

AI, Change, and Long-Term Implications

AI represents not just immediate impact, but long-term change. IB Digital Society students should consider implications such as:

• Shifts in decision-making authority
• Changes in social norms
• Dependence on automated systems
• Redefinition of responsibility

This forward-looking analysis is particularly valuable in evaluation.

Artificial Intelligence in Exams

In exams, students may be given unseen examples involving AI. Strong responses:

• Clearly identify the role of AI
• Apply relevant concepts such as power or ethics
• Analyze impacts and implications
• Consider multiple perspectives

Vague references to “AI being dangerous” are insufficient without explanation.

Artificial Intelligence in the Internal Assessment

AI works well as an IA focus when:

• The system clearly affects people or communities
• There are identifiable ethical concerns
• Power and accountability can be evaluated

Students should define the AI system precisely and avoid overly broad inquiries.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Students often weaken their analysis by:

• Treating AI as purely technical
• Assuming outcomes are inevitable
• Ignoring ethical responsibility
• Focusing only on benefits or risks

Balanced, concept-driven evaluation is essential.

Final Thoughts

Artificial intelligence is a defining feature of digital society, reshaping how decisions are made and power is exercised. In IB Digital Society, AI is studied not as code, but as a social system with significant ethical and societal consequences. By analyzing impacts on individuals and communities, evaluating power and responsibility, and considering long-term implications, students can produce thoughtful, high-scoring analysis of one of the most important developments of the digital age.