Artificial Intelligence and its contribution to the common good economy

By Silvina Dalton, Co-Founder of DelPlata Green.

We all talk about the benefits of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in improving personal and business productivity, but it is rarely associated with the Common Good Economy.

The Common Good Economy is an economic model proposed by Austrian economist Christian Felber, based on cooperation and the values that foster human relationships. In the business context, it is a concept that seeks to ensure that companies not only generate economic benefits but also contribute to the common good of society, taking into account the social and environmental impacts of their activities, working to improve the lives of people and the planet. AI has the potential to help generate businesses focused on three axes: profitability, environment, and society. The positive side is that it can achieve this in several ways.

One of them is by improving efficiency and productivity. AI can help businesses automate tasks, optimize processes, and improve decision-making. This leads to greater efficiency, which can translate into economic benefits.

Thanks to AI, we can also reduce environmental impact, helping businesses reduce their resource consumption, generate less waste, and mitigate their environmental impact, achieving significant benefits.

Along with the above, businesses can also improve the social well-being of their employees, customers, and communities through AI. We might think these are long-term concepts, but let's put aside the conceptual framework and look at some concrete examples of how each sector is already utilizing the benefits of AI in their daily operations.

In agriculture, for example, AI is being used to develop new technologies that help farmers become more efficient and sustainable by developing smarter irrigation systems and pest control with lower environmental impact.

In the energy sector, AI is being used to develop new renewable energy technologies, optimize solar and wind energy production, and develop new energy storage technologies. In construction, AI is designing more energy-efficient buildings, analyzing climate variables and a building's intended use to design it to minimize its energy consumption.

In healthcare, AI is being used to develop new treatments and diagnostics, using machine learning models that can diagnose diseases more accurately, or to develop new personalized treatments. And what about education, where AI is helping to create innovative learning systems that adapt to students' individual needs. For example, AI can be used to analyze student performance data and identify areas for improvement and personalized teaching strategies.

Meanwhile, in the labor sector, AI is being used to analyze hiring and promotion data, and to analyze candidate resumes to identify unconscious biases.

And we cannot fail to include aspects that cut across all sectors and relate to the values of human dignity, solidarity, social justice, and democracy promoted by the Economy of the Common Good; as well as the much-needed social inclusion, where AI can be used to create new support systems that help people with disabilities or special needs, promoting equal opportunities for all.

However, using AI to promote the Common Good Economy poses some challenges. One of the most important is the need to ensure that AI is used ethically and responsibly, and not to discriminate against people or increase inequality. Another challenge is the need for public policies that support the development of the Common Good Economy and help ensure that companies use AI to generate positive impacts on society.

Fountain: Concepción Newspaper.